In their protests against racism, the agitators in the Richmond city of Virginia vandalized the statue of Christopher Columbus who was said to be a ‘sign of genocide’ for the people of America. As per the reports of nbc12.com, protestors tore down the statue at around 9 pm in Byrd park after a peaceful demonstration in the honor of indigenous people. Right after that, the statue was ripped from its foundation, painted with spray, and then was set blazed. After this, they threw the statue in the nearby lake.
It took the protestors less than two hours to gather in the Byrd park, sloganeering against racism and chanted against the statue of the voyager that was installed in that area. The pedestal was later painted with spray and covered with a placard saying ‘Columbus represents Genocide’.
Reportedly, no cop was present in an around the demonstration while a chopper was seen circling the area. Activist Chelsea Higgs-Wise while talking to the protestors in the Byrd park said in her speech, “We have to start where it all began. We have to start with people who stood first on this land.”
Reportedly, the statue was the first Columbus statue in the southern part of the country, which was installed in December 1927 in Richmond.
Christopher Columbus statue beheaded in Boston
In an another similar incident, the statue of christopher columbus was found beheaded. Reportedly, the incident is of North End’s Christopher Columbus park in Boston.
As per reports of wpxi.com, Boston parks and recreation commissioner said that destroying the public property is not a way to protest.
The incident happened during the protests against the death of George Floyd in police custody that triggered riots in the various parts of the country. Violent mobs have rampaged through the streets pillaging and looting stores and engaging in vandalism and arson.
Netizens reacted on the incident
Christopher Columbus was a well-known voyager of Italian origin who completed four voyages across the Atlantic ocean bringing colonization in America. He is credited with ‘discovering’ the Americans, and it is accused that he used violence to take over territories from native Americans already living in the Americans from pre-historic times.
Americans reacted to the incidents related to statues of the voyager. Some netizens were seen calling the protestors ‘idiots’ and Columbus a ‘learned’ man.
Christopher Columbus is one of the most significant men in the history of western civilization and none of the non-contributing idiots who tore down his statue will ever achieve anything close to what Columbus achieved. We are overrun by ungrateful, stupid brats. https://t.co/HnfnBSsNzd
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) June 10, 2020
Protesters in Richmond tore down the Christopher Columbus statue in Byrd Park and threw it in the lake tonight and Google already updated the location LMAOOOOO pic.twitter.com/kTbiw9LL01
— James Miller (@JayArrMiller) June 10, 2020
Various aspersions about whose statue will be the next by the netizens was also noticed.
Christopher Columbus? He was Italian with Spanish Ships who first discovered the Bahamas! Chris never even set foot on future U.S. soil during any of his 4 Western Voyages. What the Hell? Who’s statue is next…….Lady Liberty? She’s FRENCH, ya know! https://t.co/JTmlbjKgpb
— Robert A Shumway, MD, FACS, FAACS (@qqqxxx) June 10, 2020
proposal: columbus day 2020 is just finding all of the columbus statues and throwing them into the nearest body of water
— ❄️hannah❄️ (@gwendalsflow) June 10, 2020
