Controversial Columbus statue will have a new home — plus robust security
The former Providence Christopher Columbus statue has found its new home in Johnston, where it will be surrounded by a fence and set under the watchful eye of security cameras to prevent vandalism.
Mayor Joseph Polisena Jr.'s office said two companies, United Fence and Mt. Pleasant Alarms, have offered to install the equipment free of charge, giving the statue some protection against vandals who splashed it with red paint numerous times over the years. An estimate for the value of the work was not immediately available.
Polisena anticipates having the work done by the statue's unveiling on Columbus Day at Johnston Memorial Park. And while the mayor said he hasn't heard complaints about the statue's arrival, he wants any naysayers to know that their money isn't being used to pay for the project.
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"That is the one thing that I will say to any individuals that do not support the decision [who] do live in Johnston – none of their tax money was used as part of this effort at all," Polisena said. "So at least they can take solace in knowing it was a completely pro bono effort."
Where was the Christopher Columbus statue for the last three years?
For nearly three years, the statue sat in storage after being removed from Providence's Columbus Square following protests, as critics contended the explorer represented genocide and slavery. Around the same time, America reckoned with the meaning of many of its historical statues. Dozens of monuments came down, including Richmond, Virginia's sculpture of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
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But former Providence Mayor Joseph Paolino Jr. – who later bought the statue for $50,000 – didn't agree with the city's reckoning. In a statement, he called it "a symbol of Italian culture" and thanked Polisena for hosting it.
"The mayor is playing an important role to ensure that this historical symbol is not melted down and turned into scrap metal," Paolino said. "We cannot run away from history. The Christopher Columbus statue is a source of pride for many families in our state."
The Columbus statue is from a sculpture by Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of New York’s Statue of Liberty, according to previous reports in The Journal. The original cast was done in sterling silver by the Gorham Manufacturing Co. for the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. It was meant to be a flashy announcement that the silverware company could also produce monumental statuary.
Columbus monuments have polarizing impact in this era
The nation's hard look at monuments was spurred in part by the police murder of George Floyd in 2020. The summer following the killing – and in the month right after Providence's statue was removed – the Black Lives Matter Rhode Island Political Action Committee was formed. Now, its leader, Harrison Tuttle, is worried locals didn't learn much in the fallout of that summer.
To Tuttle, who said he has an Italian family member, the statue "represents all the wrong things about our country."
"I really struggle, as someone who grew up with an Italian grandmother, to see someone who has committed acts of genocide be somebody that Italian people, or anybody, would want to be a symbolic person of their culture," he said.
Polisena contended that it was the "norm" in Columbus's day that there was "mistreatment across the globe."
"I think he is an important historical figure and I understand people think he comes with controversy," Polisena said. "But my response to that is, I’m not going to judge people who lived over 500 years ago based on modern societal norms today."
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence's Christopher Columbus statue finds new home in Johnston RI
