LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – The controversy over the General Alfred Mouton monument in Downtown Lafayette continues…
On Tuesday night, a rally was held to commemorate the 55th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have A Dream Speech,’ and to call for the removal of the monument from the city.

The Daughters of the Confederacy originally paid for, and put up the monument in 1922, to celebrate Mouton’s legacy in Lafayette.

The rally was organized by New Beginnings Christian Church, and other local organizations, but there was only a couple of dozens of people who showed up.
Organizers wanted to send a message to city leaders, that they don’t want the monument destroyed, but they’d rather have it moved to a museum or something of that nature.

With songs, prayers and speeches.

“This symbol of white supremacy, this symbol, belongs to a different era,” said Fred Prejean, with Move the Mindset.

People gathered in Downtown Lafayette to call for the removal of the Mouton statue.

“We can see this monument as a reminder, that our work is not yet done,” said Bishop Carlos Harvin, with New Beginnings Christian Churh of Lafayette. 

The monument was originally put up by the Alfred Mouton chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy to honor his legacy.
But some now see the monument as a symbol of racism and slavery, and they want to move past that.

“Progress, forward and onward movement towards a destination. Move the statue,” said Marja Broussard, with the NAACP. 

People who are in favor of keeping the monument up, say it’s a part of American history, Mouton was also a war hero, and his family played a critical role in the history of Lafayette..

The rally ended with a prayer to end racism and for the country’s leaders, and to send a message that they don’t believe the Mouton statue represent’s the cities values.

“That we will be able to break the bondage of racism, on a micro level and on a macro level, that we will be able to see the shackles broken,” said a local pastor.

After the rally, News 10 spoke with a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Alfred Mouton chapter, and she told us that she believes this monument is all to honor a veteran who died for his country. And that she wishes the community would focus on events that bring people together and not apart.