Hegseth orders return of Confederate monument at Arlington cemetary, removed by 'woke lemming'

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the restoration of a Confederate monument, saying it was removed in 2023 by "woke lemmings."

"I’m proud to announce that Moses Ezekiel’s beautiful and historic sculpture – often referred to as “The Reconciliation Monument” – will be rightfully be returned to Arlington National Cemetery near his burial site," he wrote on X post Tuesday. "It never should have been taken down by woke lemmings. Unlike the Left, we don’t believe in erasing American history – we honor it."

The cost of the restoration at the cemetery – the largest in the U.S. National Cemetery System and one of two maintained by the Army – will be $10 million, and the project will take about two years, according to a U.S. Army official. 

The monument was created by Confederate veteran Moses Ezekiel, and it was constructed in 1914. It was removed in 2023 at the recommendation of Congress. 

The monument features a female figure that has olive leaves on the head. It represents the American South during the time of the Civil War.

The Pentagon predicts it will take two years to put it back in Arlington National Cemetery as the base has to be replaced, and the monument refurbished, the Army official told The Associated Press.

The cemetery’s webpage states the statute included sanitized depictions of slavery and had a false interpretation of the Civil War.