Confederate monuments around US removed in wake of George Floyd's death
WASHINGTON - The nationwide protests in the name of George Floyd have not only sparked growing calls to remove statues, but they're impacting pop culture and the entertainment world.
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At the U.S. Capitol there are about 11 statues of soldiers or officials who have served in the Confederacy. On Thursday, lawmakers introduced a bill that would remove them. It's a call to action happening across the country.
It's resonating not only with government officials, but with music stars, sports organizations and even children's TV shows.
The statue of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy was toppled down by a group of protestors in Richmond, Virginia Wednesday night. It's the second statue to come down in Richmond in just two days.
"Anything confederate we need to move beyond that, we need to replace it with something positive," said Virginia resident Rob Shelton.
"I think it's definitely part of our history I don't think that they should be destroyed. ...I think they should be kept in a museum," said Jacob Sessions.
"Even though I don't think it's right to go out there and tear it up this way, that may be the only way to get people to listen, nothing else has worked in the past," said criminal defense attorney Keith Lamar Jr.
Meanwhile, despite Governor Ralph Northam's plans to remove a statue of the Confederate General Robert E. Lee, a judge has temporarily blocked it.
"It's not only disrespectful to the black people living here, but it's disrespectful to our country and to our democracy," said Selihome Gebreyesus.
"With the KKK I agree that should be torn down, but to take everyone down, like Robert E. Lee, who fought for the other side. It's hard to justify that," said Todd McFarland.
Amid continuing protests triggered by the police killing of George Floyd and the wider problem of racism in the country, pop culture and the entertainment world are shifting.
Nascar has banned the confederate flag. Country Music's Lady Antebellum is dropping the Antebellum -- changing their name to Lady A. "It's a step towards some kind of progress," said Sessions.
"If people want their name to be Lady A, or not have the flag on uniforms. I think it's completely appropriate and long overdue," said Gebreyesus.
George Mason University Associate Professor Jeremy Mayer Weighed in.
"These kinds of marketing decisions by a country music band, are made all the time -- what's cool and what's hot, what's acceptable -- that will never stop changing. So if Lady Antebellum has to change her name, I'm ok with that, that's how culture works," said Mayer.
The TV show Cops and Live PD have been canceled -- and some say it's gone too far. Even Nickelodeon's children's cartoon Paw Patrol took to Twitter putting the show on hold.
"You may know Chase is the police cop on Paw Patrol. There were calls to euthanize the police dog on social media. I wish I was joking, but I'm not," said Republican Senator Tom Cotton.
"Where do we stop? We gotta make a decision, but first we must pause all debate, instead of reacting right now," said McFarland.
The entertainment world is really responding to these protests. HBO has temporarily removed 'Gone With the Wind,' saying the movie shows 'racial prejudices.'