The president of the Houston branch of the NAACP is speaking out against Mayor Sylvester Turner’s decision to move a Confederate statue to a local museum.

The Spirit of the Confederacy statue will be relocated to the Houston Museum of African American Culture in Midtown.

But in a strongly-worded statement issued on behalf of the Houston NAACP and on the organization’s letterhead, president Dr. James Douglas condemned the move:

“My heart dropped when I learned that a statue celebrating all the soldiers who fought for the Confederate Army would be moved from the Sam Houston Park to the Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC).

What I do believe is that a history of the Civil War should be captured in a museum, but not in the form of statues.

“At a time when it appears that the thought of equality for all and reformation of our law enforcement institutions are at the forefront of our minds, I find it hard to believe that the City of Houston and the Houston Museum of African American Culture would even consider bestowing such an honor on individuals who created treasonous acts against this nation almost 160 years ago.”