Bill Would Bring Changes to Stone Mountain Park

STONE MOUNTAIN, GA -- Georgia’s Stone Mountain Park, enshrined in state law as a memorial to Confederate soldiers, would see some changes under a bill being considered by the Georgia legislature.

Filed last week by state Rep. LaDawn Jones, an Atlanta Democrat, House Bill 760 calls for “an appropriate, inclusive, and historically accurate memorial to the Civil War era” at the park just a few miles east of Atlanta.

Critics of the park, which now sits in one of metro Atlanta’s most culturally diverse areas, have long argued that its imagery -- including its massive carving of Confederate leaders Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis -- celebrates the Confederate cause while downplaying, or even ignoring, the horrors of slavery.

The bill would strike the word “Confederate” that exists in current state law and add language changing the park’s description from “a Confederate memorial and public recreation area” to “a memorial to the Civil War era and public recreation area.”

The bill also clarifies that agencies overseeing the park could make changes to existing Confederate displays and monuments, as long as those changes are “historically accurate and appropriate.”

To be clear, the bill faces an uphill battle. It’s sponsored by a Democrat in a state where the House, Senate and governor’s office are all held by Republicans. And it would no doubt stir controversy if it began moving through the legislature.

As the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, Georgia’s chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans sent a message to members Tuesday night, urging them to oppose the effort.

“If we lose this battle, what will be next?” wrote Ray McBerry, a former leader of the group, according to the AJC.

But, even if Jones’ bill fails, changes are likely at the park.

The Stone Mountain Memorial Association, tasked by the state to oversee the park, has announced plans to install a replica Liberty Bell atop the mountain in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. The association also plans to add a permanent exhibit on African-American soldiers who served in the Civil War.

(Photo by Ahoerstemeier via Wikimedia Commons)