Protest marchers advocate removal of Confederate monument in Gainesville

More than 200 people thronged the Cooke County Courthouse square Wednesday evening, many calling for the removal of a Confederate monument.

The group that turned out July 1 calling for the removal of the Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument on the northeast corner of the courthouse grounds was met with counter-protesters.

Several wore shirts adorned with PRO Gainesville, a Gainesville-based group that has appeared regularly at the monument site since mid-June. The group alternated between marching around the courthouse and gathering at the courthouse's east steps, shouting "black lives matter," "tear it down" and other calls to action. Many carried signs with various protest statements or slogans.

Counter-protesters milled around the statue — a 30-foot-tall stone monument with an inscription spanning the four sides of the base — or stood on the east sidewalk on Dixon Street across from the courthouse. Some open-carried firearms while a few carried signs.

Read more: https://www.gainesvilleregister.com/news/local_news/protest-marchers-advocate-removal-of-confederate-monument/article_5ba615ec-bc94-11ea-8a13-f74c411e0e6c.html