Controversial statue torn down in 2017 re-emerges at golf course in Texas
A statue of Confederate general Robert E Lee that was removed from a park in Dallas is now on display in a golf course in West Texas.
The bronze sculpture of both Lee and a soldier on horseback was removed from the park in Dallas in 2017, and later sold in an online auction.
It now resides at the Lajitas Golf Resort in Terlingua, in the west of the state.
The statue was removed from a Dallas park in 2017. Pic: AP
The 27,000-acre resort is owned by Dallas billionaire and pipeline guru Kelcy Warren and managed by Scott Beasley, the president of Dallas-based WSB Resorts and Clubs.
They received the statue as a donation in 2019.
The sculpture by Alexander Phimister Proctor from 1935 was among statues of the confederate leader placed around the country that ended up being removed from public view after violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.
It had been kept in storage in a former naval air station in Dallas until its sale in 2019, city council documents show, with local media reporting it went for $1.4m (£1m).
The community of Terlingua in Texas has a tiny population of just 100, and sits close to the Rio Grande.
Data shows the village has no black residents.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
September: Cheers as Confederate statue removed in Virginia
Club manager Mr Beasley told the Houston Chronicle that the sculpture is only there so it can be preserved, calling it “a fabulous piece of art” and says that critics are “uneducated”.
“I would say that of the 60-plus-thousand guests we host each year, we’ve had one or two negative comments,” he added.
However, Black Lives Matter Houston activist Brandon Mack does not believe that the statue is just there to be preserved or serve as “an appreciation for art”, adding that the same arguments are not made of other offensive symbols throughout history.
Subscribe to Divided States on Apple podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Spreaker
The confederacy was a military force in 19th-century America, that fought the government to uphold the institution of slavery during the US civil war, and were largely seen to be white supremacists and a symbol of racism.
It was eventually defeated, but flags, symbols and regalia can controversially still be seen in some parts of the country today, particularly in southern states, from which the army operated.
Children are among the fatalities in a mass shooting at a child’s birthday party in California.
Police said four people had died and 10 were wounded in the incident in Stockton, about 60 miles east of San Francisco.
Officers were called on Saturday to a banquet hall just before 6pm local time (2am UK time) and district attorney Ron Freitas said children were among the dead.
He said the attacker was still at large.
First responders walk through a parking lot near the scene of a mass shooting in Stockton, California. Pics: AP
“We can confirm at this time that approximately 14 individuals were struck by gunfire, and four victims have been confirmed deceased,” San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office said on X.
The post said early indications suggest it could be a “targeted incident” but that information remains limited.
Police have so far not disclosed the attacker’s identity and the motive is unclear.
Stockton’s vice mayor Jason Lee confirmed on Facebook that the shooting on Lucile Avenue happened at a child’s birthday party.
Pics: AP
Mayor Christina Fugazzi also said that “families should be together instead of at the hospital, standing next to their loved one, praying that they survive”.
California governor Gavin Newsom’s office added that he had been briefed on the “horrific shooting”.
Venezuela has accused Donald Trump of a “colonial threat” after he said the airspace “above and surrounding” the country should be considered closed “in its entirety”.
Mr Trump made the declaration amid growing tensions with President Maduro – and as the US continues attacking boats it claims are carrying drugs from Venezuela.
He wrote on Truth Social: “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”
Air traffic above Venezuela on Saturday afternoon. Pic: FlightRadar24
Venezuela’s foreign affairs office called it a “colonial threat” and “illegal, and unjustified aggression”.
It accused the president of threatening “the sovereignty of the national airspace… and the full sovereignty of the Venezuelan state”.
President Trump’s words were part of a “permanent policy of aggression against our country” that breached international law and the UN Charter, it added.
The Pentagon and the White House have so far not given any additional detail on the president’s statement.
Mr Trump’s post comes after the American aviation regulator last week warned of a “potentially hazardous situation” over Venezuela due to a “worsening security situation”.
Nicolas Maduro is widely considered a dictator by the West. Pic: Reuters
The South American nation revoked operating rights for six major airlines that went on to suspend flights to the country.
Mr Trump warned a few days ago that land operations against suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers would begin “very soon”.
Such a move would be a major escalation in Operation Southern Spear – the US naval deployment in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific that’s so far attacked at least 21 vessels.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Three killed as US strikes another alleged drug boat
Venezuela has said the attacks, which have killed more than 80 people, amount to murder.
The US has released videos of boats being targeted, but hasn’t provided evidence – such as photos of their cargo – to support the smuggling claims.
Read more:
Trump may have another motive in war on drugs
The US-Venezuela crisis explained
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Venezuela claims Trump creating ‘fables’ to justify ‘war’
The Pentagon has sought to justify the strikes by labelling the drug gangs as “foreign terrorist organisations” – putting them on par with the likes of al Qaeda.
It claims the boats targeted are carrying drugs bound for the US, although Sky’s chief correspondent says the final destination is likely to be Europe and West Africa.
President Maduro has denied Mr Trump’s claims he is involved in the drugs trade himself and said his counterpart wants to oust him so he can install a more sympathetic government.
Venezuelan officials have also claimed Mr Trump’s true motivation is access to the country’s plentiful oil reserves.
Mr Maduro is widely considered a dictator who’s cheated elections and has been president since 2013.
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment3 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024