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WEBVTT OTHERS SAY IT IS A BAD IDEA.THOSE PEOPLE WHO DEFEND THISSTATUES ARE REALLY DEFENDING THECAUS OF ENSLAVEMENT AND WHITESUPREMACY.AUBRY: MALCOLM SUBER IS ONE OFTHE LEADERS OF TAKE EM DOWNNOLA.>> THESE MONUMENTS WERE BUILTFOR THEIR HEROES WHO FOUGHT TOKEEP BLACK PEOPLE ENSLAVED ANDSO CERTAINLY WE THINK IT WAS OURDUTY TO REMEDY THAT HISTORICWRONG.AUBRY: AND THE CITY AGREES.MONDAY'S RULING GIVES THEM THEOK TO TAKE DOWN THESE 3MONUMENT>> P.G.T.BEAUREGARD, ROBERT E.LEE AND JEFFERSON DAVIS.>> I SEE THEIR POINT BUT IRESPECTFULLY DISAGREE.AUBRY: GLENN DAVIS WAS BORN ANDRAISED IN NEW ORLEANS.DEVOTE THE RESOURCES THAT YOU-- >> DEVOTE THE RESOURCES THAT YOUWOULD DEVOTE TO TAKING DOWN THESTATUES AND ADDRESS THE CRIMEISSUE AND OBVIOUSLY FIX THESTREETS.AUBRY: THE CITY SAYS PRIVATEMONEY WILL BE USED TO PAY FORTHE REMOVAL OF THE MONUMENTS.BIDS TO DO SO WILL BE RELEASEDIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS.THE CITY ALSO SAYS THE MONUMENTSWILL BE PRESERVED IN A WAREHOUSEUNTIL THEY CAN FIND ANAPPROPRIATE PLACE FOR THEM.>> THIS IS A HISTORIC BATTLETHAT WE HAVE BEEN WAGING AND YOULOST.JUST LIKE YOU LOST THE CIVIL WARAND YOU REFUSE TO ADMIT THAT.>> I THINK IT IS GOING TO THEANOTHER LOSS FOR THE CITY.JUST LIKE CANAL STREET WAS OURSHOPPING DISTRICT, DH HOMES, MASION BLANCHE IT IS JUSTGOING TO BE ANOTHER CONTINUATION

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The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ruled Monday in favor of the city in its effort to remove Confederate-era monuments. City officials told WDSU reporter Travers Mackel that the appellate court sided with rulings from a federal judge and the district court in Orleans Parish. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals previously said that the monuments couldn't be touched until the appeals process was completed. Mackel said the 5th Circuit decision clears the way for the city to remove the monuments. “Today, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the city’s ability to control its property. This win today will allow us to begin to turn a page on our divisive past and chart the course for a more inclusive future," Mayor Mitch Landrieu said. City leaders said the ruling applies to three monuments: the statues of P.G.T. Beauregard, Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. The city said it will begin the legal process to remove the Liberty Place monument downtown, which is subject to federal court order. “Once removed, we will have the opportunity to join together and select new, unifying symbols that truly reflect who we are today,” Landrieu said. The New Orleans City Council in December 2016 approved the removal of the four Confederate-era statues. Advocates of the monuments took their case to the courts to stop the removal process. Landrieu's office said the statues will be moved from their prominent locations to places where they can be remembered. The monuments will be preserved in a warehouse until the city finds an appropriate place for them. The city said private money will be used to pay for the removal of the monuments. Bids for removal will be released soon, the city said. "These monuments do not now, nor have they ever, reflected the history, the strength, the richness, the diversity or the soul of New Orleans," Landrieu said. The Monumental Task Committee gave WDSU a statement about the ruling. The group, which maintains several monuments around the city, said it is disappointed in the ruling, but it is looking at other options to keep the monuments in place: "Monumental Task Committee, Louisiana Landmarks Society, Foundation for Historical Louisiana and Beauregard Camp No. 130 are carefully reviewing the 5th Circuit's decision, and appreciate the time and effort the panel of three judges spent reaching its conclusions and writing its opinion. The plaintiffs are obviously disappointed in the ruling, but note that the court's own rules allow a party to ask all 14 active judges of the 5th Circuit to reconsider the appeal. In fact, several of the court's important decisions were initially made by a panel of three judges before a final determination by the full court. "Monumental Task Committee, Louisiana Landmarks Society, Foundation for Historical Louisiana and Beauregard Camp No. 130 are weighing whether to ask for a rehearing en banc that will allow all the judges of the 5th Circuit to take part in this critically important decision. "Despite this setback, the nonprofit organizations that filed the original suit will continue to argue that all the city's historic monuments and cultural sites should be preserved and protected, and that a more appropriate response to calls for the monuments' removal is a program to include explanatory plaques and markers to present these individuals in the context of their time. Furthermore, in anticipation of the 300th anniversary of the founding of New Orleans, these same organizations would like to work with the city in an ambitious effort to erect additional monuments and cultural sites that honor all those who participated in our city's history." Keep up with local news, weather and current events with the WDSU app here. Sign up for our email newsletters to get breaking news right in your inbox. Click here to sign up!