Blockage sought of I-65 Nathan Bedford Forrest statue

Tennessee Democrats have already called on the removal of a Nathan Bedford Forrest bust from the Tennessee state Capitol building.

Now, a Nashville Democrat — one who is running for mayor of Nashville — says she is seeking to block a long-criticized privately owned Nathan Bedford Forrest statue on land near Interstate 65 so that it can no longer be seen from the highway.

Metro At-large Councilwoman and mayoral candidate Megan Barry said in a media release Monday that she has spoken to Republican Gov. Bill Haslam about restoring trees and brush along Interstate 65 via private funds to block views of the statue from the interstate.

Meanwhile, Metro Councilman Jerry Maynard, who is a paid adviser of mayoral candidate Bill Freeman, told The Tennessean he is drafting a council resolution that would request the state to block visibility of the statue.

Their separate pushes follow a recent mass shooting in a black church in Charleston, S.C., that has led to calls for that state to remove a Confederate battle flag from outside its state Capitol building.

Forrest, born in Middle Tennessee, was a lieutenant general for the Confederate Army during the Civil War and first grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

A 25-foot fiberglass Forrest statue, designed by the late sculptor and attorney Jack Kershaw, was erected on private land in 1998 near Crieve Hall. Kershaw was among a series of attorneys hired by James Earl Ray after being convicted of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968.

The statue has been a source of controversy in Nashville and occasional vandalism ever since it was built. The statue, surrounded by Confederate state battle flags, sits on a 3.5-acre property owned by Bill Dorris, a Nashville businessman.

"We have witnessed the deadly effects of racism in Charleston and throughout our history," Barry said in a prepared statement.

"In Nashville along I-65, there is a large monument of Nathan Bedford Forrest on private land, which serves as nothing more than a symbol of division. It was created by notorious racist Jack Kershaw, who at the time was reported to have said, 'Somebody needs to say a good word for slavery.' This is an offensive display of hatred that should not be a symbol for a progressive and welcoming city such as Nashville.

"While we cannot remove this monument from private land, I had a good conversation with Gov. Haslam and I look forward to working with him and with TDOT to restore the trees and brush along the stretch of I-65," Barry said Monday. "I am optimistic that we may be able to see action taken on this issue. I will happily work with the governor to raise the private funds necessary to make this happen in a way that does not detract from other road projects."

The Joseph E. Johnston Camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans organized the kickoff event that dedicated the Forrest statue in 1998. Also participating were 40 other SCV camps, the United Daughters of the Confederacy and 10 re-enactment groups in period dress



According to a Tennessean story published in 1998, former state Sen. Douglas Henry, D-Nashville, had led the effort to get the state to clear trees from the interstate view of the statue.

Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236 and on Twitter @joeygarrison.



