...so now the South Philadelphia statue of Christopher Columbus is being removed, due to several days of fighting between those who want to tear it down and those who want to leave it up.
Many people recognize that Columbus has a checkered history, but tearing down monuments does nothing to help people learn about the nuances of one's achievements and sins.
It's not only Christopher Columbus and Confederate generals. Recently defaced was a statue of Matthias Baldwin, a 19th-century abolitionist. Elsewhere, "activists" are stating aloud their plans to tear down Emancipation Memorial, a Washington, D.C. statue funded by former slaves, depicting President Lincoln helping a newly liberated slave to rise off his knees.
If any changes are to be made to our landscapes with respect to murals, statues, and other monuments, they should come after long, careful, well-reasoned discussion, and not in reaction to vandalism and mob violence. Thoughtful conversation is how a civilized society should be operated; one should never reward criminal behavior with positive reinforcement or capitulation. Unfortunately, the precedent has now been set.
No comments:
Post a Comment