AUSTIN, Texas — The public has 90 days to submit ideas about what to do with a Confederate plaque that has been removed from inside the Texas State Capitol in Austin.
At a meeting Friday morning, the Texas State Preservation Board discussed what to do with the plaque that has been removed from a wall inside the Capitol. In a motion that was passed Jan. 25, it was decided the plaque will be given to the curator of the Capitol while the public submits ideas and comments on where it should end up.
The plaque, which originated from the Children of the Confederacy, belongs with it's "rightful owner," the United Daughters of the Confederacy said on behalf of the organization.
"The Children of the Confederacy, also known as CofC, wants their plaque," said Karen Pieroni, Texas director of the CofC. "If the state doesn't want the plaque, we would like to have it returned to us so that we can find an appropriate entity whom will allow it to be displayed."
The Austin Civil War Roundtable said in a statement they recommend preserving the plaque and displaying it in an "appropriate location with an explanatory plaque to be placed beside it." They said they recommend the explanatory plaque "explain the historical context and contemporary thought about the wording on the original plaque."
Texas State Rep. Eric Johnson (D-Dallas) called to remove the plaque more than one year ago. In January, he confirmed the plaque had officially been removed from the Capitol's wall.
