And we can't have that in the city of Charlottesville"[5] Local NAACP head Rick Turner spoke in support of removal, calling Lee a "terrorist".
Others accused the city council and Bellamy of disregarding Lee's historical significance and how important he was to Virginia, of sowing division, and of trying to rewrite history.
[6][7] In April 2016, the city council decided to appoint a special commission, named the Blue Ribbon Commission on Race, Monuments and Public Spaces, to recommend to city officials how to best handle issues surrounding statues of Stonewall Jackson (Thomas Jonathan Jackson) in Court Square and Lee in Lee Park, as well as other landmarks and monuments.
The lawsuit sought a temporary injunction to halt the removal, arguing that Charlottesville City Council's decision violated a state law designed to protect American Civil War monuments and memorials, and that the council had additionally violated the terms of McIntire's gift to Charlottesville of the statue and the land for Lee Park.
[14] On May 2, 2017, Judge Richard Moore issued a temporary injunction blocking the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue for six months, in the public's interest, pending a court decision in the suit.