This archive report was first published on 19 June 2020.
On May 25, the world witnessed the latest in a long line of African Americans killed by white law enforcement, sparking a global civil unrest that has left many Americans questioning their country's racist past.
At the forefront of this movement is the anti-racism, anti-police brutality 'Black Lives Matter' movement, which has seen an explosion of support since George Floyd's death.
Richmond, the city that was once the capital of the Confederacy, has been at the epicenter of this movement, with statues of white men who championed slavery in the spotlight.
"The Civil War was probably the nation's most traumatic experience," says Ryan K. Smith, associate professor of history at Virginia Commonwealth University.
"It was a cataclysmic event that ended up abolishing slavery which had been a foundational element of this country's economy and social relations," he adds.
Many white Southerners, he says, had been taught to valorize the Confederacy and even celebrate it as part of their identity.
However, others have long questioned why a society which sought to oppress one race should be venerated, and Floyd's killing is proving a turning point.
Since May 25, three statues of men who fought for slavery and one of Christopher Columbus have been toppled by protesters in Richmond alone.
"We have so much respect for Arthur Ashe and everything he stood for," says 35-year-old McCrea, who brought a brush from home to clean the monument.
"It's so odd to have statues of people who were pro-slavery, and pro-keeping people down," she adds.
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced in early June that he had ordered the removal of the imposing statue of Robert E. Lee, commander-in-chief of the Confederate army.
His decision was immediately challenged in court, but activists are optimistic.
And Richmond City Council unanimously backed the removal of the rest of the statues.
Activists have turned the square where Lee's statue stands into a memorial for Floyd and other African Americans killed by police, with signs, slogans and flowers.
"It's a very important moment in history so we wanted to be part of it... things that we've been wishing to happen we're starting to see before our eyes," says the 47-year-old network engineer.
