The Jefferson Davis statue on Richmond’s iconic Monument Avenue has been vandalized with the message “Black Lives Matter.”
It’s unclear when the message appeared, but it was visible on the memorial’s base Thursday morning.

Motorists and joggers were stopping to take photos of the statue.

The Davis statue is slated to serve as a key turnaround point in the international bicycling race coming to the city in September. A local activist group has called on officials to change the race route for the UCI Road World Championships to avoid highlighting the Confederate monuments.

Davis, former president of the Confederate States of America, is buried in Richmond’s Hollywood Cemetery.

The statue was unveiled in the summer of 1907, drawing an estimated crowd of 100,000 on the final day of a Confederate reunion.

The Davis monument features a semi-circle of 13 columns representing the 11 states that seceded during the Civil War and the two states that participated in the Confederate Congress. A bronze figure of Davis stands atop a 12-foot pedestal. “Vindicatrix,” an allegorical figure of the South, stands on the taller, 67-foot column.

Monument Avenue, a National Historic Landmark District, features statues of other Confederate leaders, including Robert E. Lee, J.E.B. Stuart, “Stonewall” Jackson and Matthew Fontaine Maury. On Thursday, those monuments appeared untouched.

Original Article Found At http://www.richmond.com/news/local/city-of-richmond/article_251992bb-cf9a-58e6-9bcd-ec4d50dede87.html