Ongoing community disputes over historical statues has reached the city of Memphis, and now, mediation could be used to resolve the matter.

In a dispute between the city and the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a mediator will attempt to resolve the differences and determine whether or not and how the statue of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest will be removed.

According to Allan Wade, City Council Attorney, mediation and recommended delaying the unveiling of a plan to remove the statue from its current location in Health Sciences Park in Downtown.  The plan, which is a collaboration between the mayor’s administration Wade is "substantially completed," and should be ready by the next council meeting.

The mediator will be overseen by former state Supreme Court justices Janice Holder and William “Mickey” Barker.  The goal of the mediation process is to find a new home for the statue that both sides are able to agree on. 

At the moment, the Sons of Confederate Veterans have agreed to participate in the mediation, but their official position remains the same – “nothing will be moved: no statues, no graves ”. The organization has opposed the city’s efforts to remove this and other statues and made a challenge to the renaming of city parks, which have thus far been unsuccessful.

An administrative law judge is set to hear the city’s case before the end of the year concerning the removal of the Forrest Statue.  The city claims it does not need the historical committee’s approval to move it because the application to do so was filed before historical preservation laws were strengthened in the area.