Virginia’s only black statewide officeholder bows out of Stonewall Jackson tribute

Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, Virginia’s first black statewide elected official in a generation, slipped off the dais in the state Senate on Monday to quietly protest a tribute to Confederate Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson.

After Sen. Emmett W. Hanger Jr. (R-Augusta) called on the Senate to adjourn for the day in honor of Jackson, whose birthday was Sunday, Fairfax (D) moved from his spot as presiding officer to a bench normally occupied by Senate pages. Sen. Stephen D. Newman (R-Bedford), the Senate pro tempore, stepped up in place of Fairfax.

Fairfax’s protest was so low-key that some senators missed it, or thought Fairfax had just wanted to rest his feet for a few moments.