Natural History Museum To Remove 'Problematic' Roosevelt Statue

UPPER WEST SIDE, MANHATTAN — The American Museum of Natural History plans to remove its 10-foot-tall Teddy Roosevelt statue, which has long been criticized for its depiction of Indigenous and Black people.

The museum's president said in a statement Monday that she has requested the statue — which sits on city land at the museum's Central Park West entrance — be removed given ongoing protests against racial inequality and nationwide demands for controversial monuments to be taken down.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city supports the museum's decision.

“The American Museum of Natural History has asked to remove the Theodore Roosevelt statue because it explicitly depicts Black and Indigenous people as subjugated and racially inferior. The City supports the Museum’s request," de Blasio said in a statement. "It is the right decision and the right time to remove this problematic statue.”

The Roosevelt statue has long been a focal point during Columbus Day protests and, most recently, police brutality protests following the death of George Floyd. Police are still looking for a man who threw paint on the statue June 5.

The statue depicts Roosevelt on horseback flanked by an Indigenous man and an African-American man walking alongside him in what the museum has called a "hierarchical composition."

The Natural History museum has addressed critique of the statue with an exhibition about its history and modern reactions to it last year. The exhibit came after a commission convened by de Blasio to study the city's monuments in 2017 advised that it stay in place with more information about its context.

"We are proud of that work, which helped advance our and the public’s understanding of the Statue and its history and promoted dialogue about important issues of race and cultural representation, but in the current moment, it is abundantly clear that this approach is not sufficient," said AMNH President Ellen Futter.

Futter added that the museum will still honor President Roosevelt, whose family are still trustees at the museum and support removing the statue.

“The composition of the Equestrian Statue does not reflect Theodore Roosevelt’s legacy," Roosevelt's great-grandson, Theodore Roosevelt IV said. "It is time to move the Statue and move forward.”

The decision comes as calls to take down problematic monuments and remove Confederate names from streets or military bases mount across the country, including debates surrounding the Christopher Columbus monument in Columbus Circle.

The ideas have been met with fury from President Donald Trump, who called removing the Roosevelt statue "Ridiculous" in a Tweet on Monday.