Mississippi Rep. Karl Oliver says those who destroy Confederate monuments should be 'lynched'

Recently, a number of monuments commemorating Confederate leaders have been coming down. In New Orleans, for example, a statue of Robert E. Lee was the latest to come down on Friday.

On Saturday, Mississippi Rep. Karl Oliver made an intense statement on Facebook about these changes:

"If the, and I use this term extremely loosely, 'leadership' of Louisiana wishes to, in a Nazi-ish fashion, burn books or destroy historical monuments of OUR HISTORY," he said, "they should be LYNCHED!"

According to the Jackson Free Press, the statement was "liked" by fellow Republication representatives, John Reed and Doug Mcleod.

Democratic Rep. Jeramey Anderson took to Twitter to criticize Oliver:

"I strongly condemn the statement by my colleague Rep. Karl Oliver," Anderson said, "It's hateful, offensive and ignorant. In 2017, it's a shame."

Mississippi Democratic Trust Executive Director, David McDowell, also released a statement:

"Mississippi's history of lynchings is a long and sordid one, a history we should often reflect upon and never take lightly," McDowell said.

He continued, "Words like these aren't to be thrown around. Representative Oliver should be ashamed of himself; he knows better."

The monuments have not been "destroyed" as Oliver indicated. In New Orleans, they remain intact and the city will take proposal ideas for where to put them now.

See the crowds as New Orleans removed monuments