San Francisco Removes Christopher Columbus Statue

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Protesters threatened to tear down the statue of Christopher Columbus that stood at the base of Coit Tower in San Francisco during a Black Lives Matter protest scheduled for Friday, but city workers quietly did the job for them.

At the order of Mayor London Breed, the statue was removed Thursday morning.

Arts commission officials say the statue no longer aligns with the city's commitment to racial justice. They also say that tearing down the statue, which weighs 2 tons, would've presented a safety risk if it fell.

The protesters called for throwing the statue into San Francisco Bay.

"At this important time in our country, we are all examining the ways in which institutional and structural racism permeate our society. Public art is no exception. In cities across the U.S., many historic monuments are being taken down because the actions and ideas symbolized do not deserve to be venerated. Representation matters. That's why we can, and should, continue to create artwork that reflects our values, and the diverse communities we serve," arts commission officials said in a statement.

For now, the statue has been placed in storage.

Supervisor Catherine Stefani, who is of Italian descent, said while Columbus has been a symbol of pride for many Italian Americans, she supported the statue's removal.

"Columbus also represents the painful foundation of American history," said Stefani, "the slavery, subjugation and conquest we must all condemn. To those who see Columbus in this light, the statue has represented a fictional, sanitized version of our history, celebrating the man while ignoring the generations of trauma his actions have caused."

Last year on Indigenous People's Day, formerly known as Columbus Day, police reported the statue had been vandalized, covered in red paint with the phrases "Kill all colonizers" and "Destroy all monuments of genocide" written underneath.

Back in 2018, the city removed a statue called Early Days from Civic Center Plaza after residents called for its removal, citing its offensive depiction of Native Americans.

And in 2019, San Francisco Unified School District voted to cover a 1936 mural because of the way it depicts Native Americans.

Across California, other statues are being removed.

— Patch editor Bea Karnes and Bay City News contributed to this story