A Virginia city is canceling a planned “Civil War Weekend” in the wake of last week’s violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.

WASHINGTON — A Virginia city is canceling a planned “Civil War Weekend” in the wake of last week’s violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The city of Manassas issued a statement Friday announcing the Civil War Weekend planned for Aug. 25-27, has been canceled. The city said its leaders are saddened by recent violence and want to avoid making the situation worse.

“Recent events have ignited passions in this country surrounding the Civil War and the symbols representing it,” the statement said, noting the move was for the “the safety of our residents, visitors and reenactors.”

Last week, hundreds of protesters gathered in Charlottesville to decry a gathering of white supremacists to rally against plans to remove a Confederate statue. A woman was killed when a car plowed into a crowd.