As fights over Confederate monuments continue across the country, liberals are again gearing up to force the state of Georgia to destroy the giant carvings of three Confederate Civil War generals on the side of state-owned Stone Mountain.

This week, Democrat candidate for Gov. Stacey Abrams released a statement calling for the destruction of the 158-foot-long bas-relief first started in 1923, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

The African American Democrat called the monument a “blight” on Georgia, and slammed the monument as having been funded by the KKK, despite that it was the state and federal governments that paid for most of its creation.

Abrams laid out her case in a long series of Tweets posted on August 15.

The removal of the bas relief of Confederates from Stone Mountain has been a constant debate since the state bought the property in 1958. /1 — Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) August 15, 2017

Indeed, liberals have been fighting to have the carving removed at least since the Charleston church shooting in the summer of 2015.

Paid for by founders of the 2nd KKK, the monument had no purpose other than celebration of racism, terror & division when carved in 1915. /2 — Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) August 15, 2017

While lost cause supporters did organize to initiate the project back in 1915, their money ran out quickly, and their support stopped when only one figure was fairly begun. In fact, the project laid fallow for 36 years until the state and the federal government became involved in the late 1950s and floated the funds to finish the carvings.

The site was purchased by the state of Georgia in 1958, but the sculpture was still incomplete due to the two World Wars, funding problems, and numerous missed deadlines and disputes. It was not completed until 1972. Indeed, in 1960 when the state purchased the property, the agreement that allowed the Klan to meet on the grounds in perpetuity was canceled by the state.

The Georgia General Assembly created the Stone Mountain Memorial Association soon after that and in 1960 launched a competition to have the memorial completed. The work was finished 12 years later.

Abrams went on to insist that Confederate monuments belonged only in museums and then called the monument a “blight.”

But the visible image of Stone Mountain's edifice remains a blight on our state and should be removed. /6 — Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) August 15, 2017

The idea quickly spread among Georgia liberals. A state socialist group added its voice to the call to destroy the monument.

This is the final boss of confederate monuments. We're not stopping unless we replace these scumbags with Outkast. pic.twitter.com/HdqepIDTwe — Metro Atlanta DSA 🌹 (@MetroATLDSA) August 15, 2017

https://twitter.com/tomtomorrow/status/897618576722599936

Even North Carolina’s sitting Gov. Roy Cooper seemed to agree, saying that “These monuments should come down.”

It’s time to move forward. These monuments should come down. – RC https://t.co/Lw9m6ZYbQJ — Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor) August 15, 2017

The Journal Constitution, though, disagreed with the idea, saying that the Stone Mountain carving is “heritage, warts and all.”

According to the park’s official website, “The carving of the three men towers 400 feet above the ground, measures 90 by 190 feet and is recessed 42 feet into the mountain. The deepest point of the carving is at Lee’s elbow, which is 12 feet to the mountain’s surface.”

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.