According to CBS Boston, in Boston’s North end, a Christopher Columbus statue was beheaded, leading to the statue’s removal on Wednesday and a statement from Mayor Marty Walsh, saying there will be conversation surrounding the “historical meaning” of the incident and whether it will ever go back up.
According to the Associated Press, Columbus wrote that the indigenous people he encountered were childlike and could be easily turned into slaves.
As indigenous groups revolted against terrible treatment from the Spanish, Columbus ordered a ruthless crackdown that involved having dismembered bodies paraded in public.
Through protests, direct actions, and advocacy, many groups are advocating for Christopher Columbus Day to be changed to Indigenous People’s Day.
Historian and writer, Patrick Wyman, tweeted in response to the statue beheading writing, “As somebody who just wrote a book chapter on Columbus: he was a dogshit person even by the standards of the late 15th century, it’s gross that he’s commemorated, this is awesome.”
