As members of the Pittsburgh community, we move that the Art Commission of Pittsburgh do one of the following in regard to the statue of Christopher Columbus in Schenley Park:
1. Remove the statue altogether
2. Relocate the statue to a proper location (i.e. a museum) and supplement it with proper signage to acknowledge the atrocities of Columbus
3. Add another statue of a prominent local Native American hero next to the statue of Columbus
To better contextualize Columbus, below is a written statement from Dr. Tok Thompson, Professor of Anthropology and Communications at the University of Southern California:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lZJ4H-MlN2H1LbwCnwhZj5egIu1ahbiAw8Nh1sQKzKo/edit?usp=sharingIt is important to note that there are many Native Americans who are descendants of the survivors of the holocaust launched by Columbus and the continued reverence of Columbus through statues and holidays just keeps these wounds open. We hope that the art commission will address this injustice in a timely manner.
