US: Tennessee panel votes to move Confederate bust from Capitol

Statue of the Confederate General and former Ku Klux Klan leader has been a subject of controversy for decades.

A commission in the US state of Tennessee has voted overwhelmingly to remove a bust of a Confederate general and early Ku Klux Klan leader from its Capitol, marking a key victory in a decades-long fight over the controversial sculpture. However, it could still be months before the Tennessee Historical Commission signs off on the final go-ahead to relocate the Nathan Bedford Forrest bust from the Capitol to the Tennessee State Museum. The commission, voting 25-1, agreed the bust should be moved just north of the Capitol building to the state’s museum, noting it was better equipped to furnish the appropriate historical context. The panel heard hours of testimony largely in favour of the bust’s removal before voting.