A statue of Christopher Columbus at City Hall will be taken down.
Columbus, Ohio is named after the explorer. Several people have advocated the idea to actually rename the city.
Mayor Ginther stated the statue will be “removed as soon as possible and placed in storage.”
Ginther furthered the effort by asking the Columbus Art Commission to offer alternatives that would replace the statue with art that better represents the people of Columbus.
“Now is the right time to replace this statue with artwork that demonstrates our enduring fight to end racism and celebrate the themes of diversity and inclusion.”
Columbus State Community College announced it would get rid of its statue of Columbus as well. The statue in front of the Statehouse will remain, for now.
Shelly Corbin, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe who resides in Grove City, suggests the statue’s removal is the starting point for advances that should be established in Columbus.
“It normalizes the acts of slavery and the deaths of millions of people from either murder or disease,” Corbin says of the statue. “When historical acts of violence like this are normalized, it perpetuates those acts of violence in modern day-to-day experiences.”
Sostine Codispoti, the president of the local chapter of the Sons of Italy, disagrees with the decision to remove the statue. “It’s just a sad day. It’s a sad happening. It does represent the Italian heritage and it’s been there for a long time. How can you erase history?”
“By replacing the statue, we are removing one more barrier to meaningful and lasting change to end systemic racism,” Ginther wrote.
In 2017, Ginther defended the statue of Christopher Columbus at City Hall. Now, Ginther is advocating for all public art to be reviewed for diversity and inclusion. He has even called for a review of the city seal and flag, both of which include depictions of Columbus’ ship.
