Photos texted to me by Meade, who is observing the ceremonies at Forest Hill Cemetery, where there is a section called Confederate Rest, which I have blogged about before, including last year when the city removed one of the 2 monuments. The second monument, with the names of the dead, and a tribute to the woman who took care of the graves, is what you see in the first photograph. The monument that was summarily removed could be seen as celebrating the South's lost cause because it called the soldiers "valiant" and said they surrendered "after weeks of fighting under extremely difficult conditions" and died in Madison's prison camp "suffering from wounds, malnutrition and various diseases." The second monument is still in contention, defended because it is the only place where all the names of the dead are inscribed.

Recently, Madison's City Council voted to remove it. From May 5th in the Wisconsin State Journal: "Despite the City Council’s decision to remove a second monument to Confederate soldiers at the city-owned Forest Hill Cemetery, the city will still need approval from its own Landmarks Commission and the state historic preservation offices to make the removal a reality, city officials said this week."

ADDED: Here's a longer view, showing the size of the crowd at the service (though I don't know who is there to show support for the Confederacy or the monument and who is there to observe the controversial goings-on):



And here's this attendee, make of him what you will:



Notice that the woman in the top photographs seems to be putting flags on the graves, but I don't think those are any of the flags actually used in the Civil War. Are they some reenvisioned design intended to be less associated with the values of the Confederacy and more distinctly about honoring the men who suffered and died? The man in Confederate costume, however, is staunchly displaying the flag of the Confederacy. Behind him, a man holds the more familiar Confederate battle flag.