Monument Dedicated To Michelle Obama's Ancestor Vandalized In Georgia

Georgia police are investigating the vandals who knocked over a monument dedicated to an ancestor of first lady Michelle Obama.

The monument celebrated the great-great-great-grandmother of Michelle Obama, a woman named Melvinia Shields who was born into slavery and later moved to Georgia. Officials say Shields was born into slavery in 1844 and later settled in the small suburban town of Rex, about 15 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta, where the monument is located. 

However, on Monday, authorities found the heavy stone monument was deliberately pushed off of its foundation block.   

"When I saw it, I shed a few tears," Vicki Smith, a neighbor who helped get the monument to Rex, told WSBTV's Linda Stouffer.

In order to put the monument back in place, Clayton County Commissioner Sonna Singleton said the monument company will have to lift the stone and check for cracks.

"It was our little source of pride because here we are in little old Rex, Georgia, and we had ties to the White House, so there's pride in us for that," Singleton said.

Last year, the Clayton County community celebrated the monument's installation, reports the Associated Press.

"We're going to believe just the way we showed that unity on that day here in Rex when we had the dedication of this memorial, we're going to believe that there's not that kind of hatred or dissension that someone would do this," Singleton said.

Organizers had already organized a celebration to recognize the special history of the area, set for later this month. They hope to have the monument back up and fixed by then.