CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Work is underway to take down a Confederate monument that helped spark a violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, nearly four years ago.

The removal of the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee follows years of contention, community anguish and litigation.

Workers were preparing to hoist away the statue early Saturday morning. Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker was giving a speech.

After a push to remove the statue bubbled up in 2016, the monument became a rallying cry for white supremacists and other racist groups, culminating in the violent “Unite the Right” rally in 2017. The rally left peaceful counterprotester Heather Heyer dead and dozens of people injured.