JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Crews removed a Confederate monument from a Jacksonville, Florida, park early Wednesday morning after years of debate and controversy over its removal.

Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan ordered the removal of the "Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy" monument, which has stood north of downtown in Springfield Park since 1915. Deegan said the monument was a divisive presence that had no place in a city park.

“Symbols matter," she said. "They tell the world what we stand for and what we aspire to be. By removing the Confederate monument from Springfield Park, we signal a belief in our shared humanity. That we are all created equal. The same flesh and bones. The same blood running through our veins. The same heart and soul."

A crowd gathered on the sidewalk erupted in cheers as crews took down two bronze statues, one of a woman in robes carrying a Confederate flag and the other of a woman reading to two children.

"It's bittersweet," said Jacksonville resident Wells Todd. "Why has it taken so long to remove something that should never have been put up?"

An opponent to the removal, State Rep. Dean Black, R-Jacksonville, blasted the move as a "stunning abuse of power" by Deegan. He said doing it without consulting city leaders or having a vote by the city council "is another in a long line of woke Democrats' obsession with cancel culture and tearing down history. "

Black filed legislation for the 2022 legislative session and again for the 2023 session to block cities from removing Confederate and other historical memorials in the state. Gov. Ron DeSantis would have the authority to remove and fine any elected official involved in taking down such memorials.

Wednesday's removal is the latest effort by public officials and advocates to take down monuments and memorials commemorating the Confederacy across the United States. Hundreds of Confederate statues have been removed from public spaces in the wake of the racial justice protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020.

And since the establishment of the Naming Commission by Congress in 2021, numerous Confederate monuments have also been removed from military spaces. Last week, the U.S. Army removed a century-old Confederate memorial at Arlington National Cemetery.

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Debate over Confederate monument's fate began in 2020

Discussions over the fate of the Confederate women monument started in summer 2020 when former Mayor Lenny Curry removed another monument, a statue of a Confederate soldier that had been in a downtown park for more than 100 years.

Curry later proposed the city also remove the Confederate women monument from Springfield Park in late 2021 but the Jacksonville City Council withdrew the legislation without voting on it.

Earlier this month, Jacksonville’s Office of General Counsel determined that city council approval was unnecessary because city funds were not being used for the work. City General Counsel Michael Fackler said that as mayor, Deegan had the executive authority to make the decision about the monument without seeking city council approval.

“We have worked closely with procurement, public works, and parks on the approved scope of work in accordance with municipal code in how we contract for and complete these services," Fackler said.

A grant from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund and anonymous donations to 904WARD, a Jacksonville non-profit, covered the cost of removing the statues, city officials said. The work also will remove a plaque and install temporary plaques over engravings in the pedestal for a total cost of $187,000, according to the city.

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'Not an abuse of power'

During her campaign to replace Curry, Deegan favored removing the monument and she has repeated that position repeatedly since taking office July 1.

“I think it’s very, very hard to have unity in a city…if somebody has a monument up to basically a time when you weren’t even considered a person. That would be very, very difficult for you and your family to walk by that every day in your neighborhood,” Deegan said at a town hall in Mandarin in August.

Deegan told reporters in November that Black's legislation would not impact what she does in regard to the Springfield Park monument.

City Council member Matt Carlucci, who has supported moving the monument for years, said Deegan put Jacksonville "on the right side of history."

"It's not an abuse of power," Carlucci added.

Contributing: The Associated Press