WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Another North Carolina city is cleaning up after vandals defaced the base of a Confederate soldier statue.
Multiple media organizations reported someone spray-painted unintelligible black letters on at least two sides of the downtown Winston-Salem memorial, but did not deface the soldier portrayed atop the base. The damage was mostly removed within two hours of the incident Friday night.
Police earlier issued a statement responding to queries about a downtown Ku Klux Klan rally rumored for Saturday.
Police said they had received no requests from the white supremacist organization for a rally.
The Winston-Salem Journal reports the monument was erected in 1905 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, which still claims ownership.
It stands at a street corner before the former county courthouse, which was converted to private apartments.