NEW HAVEN, Conn. — City officials said last week they would remove the statue of Christopher Columbus from New Haven’s Wooster Square within the next 60 days. Turns out they did it within one week.
For the first time in over a century, Christopher Columbus statue is not standing on its pedestal.
Around mid-morning Wednesday, those for and against the Columbus statue removal, went at each other, verbally and physically.
Peter Criscuolo, who has family roots in what used to be a predominantly Italian neighborhood, says “A group of people came and started swearing at us, calling us names, telling us we shouldn’t respect the statue because he was a killer, a murderer, a rapist. Well, we don’t know all that.”
Several times, police had to separate individuals. One person was handcuffed and detained. But, no arrests were made.
Our job right now is to protect everyone, to make sure that everyone is able to protest peacefully and execute rights, execute the rights without infringing on others,” said New Haven Police Chief Otoniel Reyes, prior to the statue being taken down.
Then, after several hours of securing the Columbus statue, which sat on its pedestal for 128 years, it was lifted from its pedestal and placed on the back of a flatbed truck just after 1 PM.
“As a black man, who teaches in this community, the fact that my kids every morning have to drive right by the statue, pre-pandemic, the fact that it’s getting removed, it is, is refreshing,” said Garrett Griffin of New Haven.
“I don’t condone anything that he has done in the past,” said Angelo Appi, Jr., a member of the Knights of Columbus of North Haven. “But, this is the present, right now. This is an icon in our community.”
Mayor Justin Elicker (D-New Haven) said in an afternoon press conference he did not show up at Wooster Square today because he did not want to be a distraction.
“The removal of the statue was spearheaded by leadership in the (New Haven) Italian community and I think that’s really important to note because, when you look at what’s happening in many other cities, statues are being toppled by people that have decided to take things into their own hands,” said Elicker.
The statue will be housed in an undisclosed Public Works building before perhaps finding its way into the Knights of Columbus Museum. But, that itinerary could change.
“I have a private bidder that will spend $100,000 or more if we can set up an auction for it online,” said Anthony Lanzetti of New Haven.
Might the next target be Yale University?
Over the last week, conservative pundit Ann Coulter and former GOP congressional candidate Jesse Kelly have been pushing the #CancelYale movement on Twitter.
Kelly tweeted, “Yale University was named for Elihu Yale. Not just a man who had slaves. An actual slave trader. I call on Yale to change its name immediately and strip the name of Yale from every building, piece of paper, and merchandise. Otherwise, they hate black people. #CancelYale.”
“I think there is a valid conversation about where do we draw the line,” said Elicker. “Where do we draw the line on what is inappropriate or not behavior historically to remove a statue or change your name.”
Yale declined to comment on the topic. Ella Kerr said #CancelYale is nothing more than A political attempt to distract from other high profile, social justice issues.
Several days ago, Elicker announced his support for the decision to change the name of the Christopher Columbus Family Academy in New Haven.
Mayor Justin Elicker released a statement on the removal:
The decision to remove the statue of Columbus today was one that was spearheaded by a group of leaders in the Italian community. While this decision for those leaders was not easy, they courageously did the right thing. I support this decision.
I want to take a moment to thank those leaders for their support in recognizing the history of colonialism and its negative effects on many cultures, and their help to identify a place where the statue can reside.
I know that there are some people who strongly disagree with the decision to remove the statute. People have the right to protest and express their opinions peacefully. We will work collaboratively to ensure we honor New Haven’s Italian Heritage and immigrant history.
I look forward to the many community conversations surrounding what we would like to see replace the statue of Christopher Columbus, and how we can highlight other cultural icons for the many Italian-Americans that have made New Haven their home. It is disappointing that some at the protest incited fighting. New Haven has a long history of lively dialogue, but violence has no place in our city. We face a very challenging moment in history. We must work as a community to listen, understand, and have respectful dialogue with each other. This moment, while challenging, is also an opportunity to bring people together.