ANNISTON, Ala. - An Alabama city has voted to remove a Confederate monument from its downtown and relocate it to a park that houses a different Confederate memorial, according to officials.
The Anniston City Council voted 4-1 on Tuesday to relocate the obelisk honoring John Pelham, a Confederate military officer born in Calhoun County, news outlets reported.
Anniston's mayor asked the council in June to consider removing the monument.
The memorial was set to be placed in Janney Furnace Park in Ohatchee where the Calhoun County Confederate Memorial is located, news outlets said. A timeline for the relocation was not immediately
given.
The city manager will be authorized to pay a civil penalty of $25,000 under Alabama's memorial preservation act, which prohibits relocating, removing, altering or renaming public buildings, streets and memorials that have been standing for more than 40 years, WVTM-TV reported.
The decision comes as protesters around the world have called for Confederate monuments and other icons that many say are symbols of racism to be removed during this year's demonstrations against racial injustice.
Anniston is about 60 miles (97 kilometers) east of Birmingham.