BASTROP, Texas — A small group of protesters gathered outside the Bastrop County Courthouse on Monday in hopes that commissioners would agree to put the removal of a Confederate monument on their next meeting agenda. 

Cheryl Lee is a life-long Bastrop resident who is helping lead the protests. She remembers seeing the monument in question more times than she can count, but says she didn't know what it was for until just last year. 

“And that day I decided I was going to start a movement to get these monuments taken down," said Lee.  

Karen Sterling, another life-long resident of the county, agrees, and says the monument should be placed in a museum. 

“Nothing like this should be on public property, it needs context, it needs explanation and it needs to go from here,” said Sterling.  

About 50 yards behind the monument, during the protest, stood a different opinion, though. William Triplet doesn't feel the monument is representative of racism like those in favor of its removal do. 

“It’s a representation of men, mostly young boys, who died. And it’s to honor the dead," said Triplet. 

Lee says the monuments' proud display on county property dishonors her ancestors. 

“My people died. My people were killed, they were enslaved. So to have this there, to me, even though I was never enslaved, is a reminder that I have family that I will never get to know," said Lee.