Calls for the removal of the flags began in 2015 , after the Charleston church shooting , by Rev. Marva Edwards , the president of Vancouver 's NAACP chapter . Even though the markers and flags are located on private property , they are and were intended to be highly visible ( to all cars travelling Interstate 5 ) . Their visibility , and events in other parts of the nation regarding Confederate memorials , still make these symbols a local focus of strong emotions , especially in the aftermath of the white nationalist Unite the Right rally August 11 – 12 , 2017 . On August 17 , 2017 the stones were vandalized , with one marker covered in black paint , the other in red . Antifa activists from nearby Portland took credit for the vandalism . The local Division Commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans spoke of bringing in private security to prevent more vandalism ; their leadership said they have received death threats over the monuments , " amid a tide of calls to remove Confederate monuments in the wake of Charlottesville violence of August , 2017 "
Charleston church shooting
Charleston church shooting
Jefferson Davis Park, Washington