Human Rights

Mississippi City To Take Down Statue Of Andrew Jackson

The Jackson City Council approved the move Tuesday, voting 5-1 to remove the statue from its place outside City Hall and relocate it.

Mississippi City To Take Down Statue Of Andrew Jackson
Rogelio V. Solis / AP
SMS

A city in Mississippi is removing a statue of its namesake, former President Andrew Jackson. 

The Jackson City Council approved the move Tuesday, voting 5-1 to remove the statue from its place outside City Hall and relocate it. 

The bronze statue was reportedly erected in 1968.

People demonstrating against racial inequality have called for the removal of statues of historical figures associated with racism. Jackson, who was a Tennessee slaveholder and general in the U.S. Army, signed the Indian Removal Act into law in 1830. It led to about 100,0000 Native Americans being relocated west of the Mississippi River. Thousands died along the way.

Federal prosecutors charged four men in late June with attempting to pull down a different statue of Jackson in Washington, D.C., near the White House. They're each being charged with destruction of federal property and face as many as 10 years in prison.