WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) - A North Carolina city along the coast has removed two Confederate statues located in public spaces near downtown.
Wilmington officials said on Twitter early Thursday that they removed a statue of former Confederate politician George Davis and a statue at another Confederate memorial that didn’t depict a particular historical figure. News outlets reported that the bases of the monuments remained in place.
City officials characterized the moves as temporary ones meant to protect public safety in accordance with a state law that generally prohibits permanent removals of Confederate monuments. They city is storing the two statues at an undisclosed location.
City officials said that the statues had become a safety concern during recent protests over racial injustice.
“While members of the community have expressed a desire to see these monuments moved for many years, recent protests and controversy over these monuments has grown to a point that the monuments, in their original locations, were a threat to public safety,” the city said in a tweet.
A number of other North Carolina cities have also taken down Confederate monuments recently, and the state removed several on the old Capitol grounds after protesters tore down two statues there.
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