Trump administration places Christopher Columbus statue near White House

Christopher Columbus statue installed near White House

The Trump administration has placed a statue of Christopher Columbus on the White House grounds on Sunday as part of the President's efforts to change perceptions of controversial leaders in history. 

WASHINGTON - The Trump administration has placed a statue of Christopher Columbus on the White House grounds on Sunday as part of the President's efforts to change perceptions of controversial leaders in history. 

The 13-foot Columbus statue – an exact replica of the statue that was thrown into the harbor in a 2020 Baltimore protest – was installed on the north side of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building adjacent to the White House.

The installation was a joint effort between the Trump administration and the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations, and was built with pieces of the old statue that were retrieved from Baltimore's Inner Harbor. 

"For over a century, Columbus’s legacy helped Italian immigrants navigate prejudice and hardship, serving as a source of unity and belonging as they built new lives in this country," said COPOMIAO President Basil M. Russo in a news release. 

Featured

article

Christopher Columbus statue toppled and thrown into harbor in Baltimore

Protesters toppled a statue of Christopher Columbus in Baltimore, Maryland, on July 4, US Independence Day.

This follows the Trump administration's attempts to restore historical monuments that were taken down in the 2020 protests that worked to remove any statues associated with historical injustices, racism, colonialism and more in U.S. history. 

"Christopher Columbus was the original American hero and one of the most gallant and visionary men to ever walk the face of the Earth," wrote Trump in a letter to Russo. 

Why is Christopher Columbus controversial?

The Italian explorer Christopher Columbus's discovery of the New World is celebrated every October as an achievement and celebration of Italian American heritage, but his image as a hero has gained controversy as historians reveal his colonialism tactics. 

As Columbus and his crew came into contact with Indigenous people, they used violence and slavery, forced their conversion into Christianity and introduced new diseases that had major long-term impacts on native people with no immunity, according to History.com.

The modern depiction of Columbus is a man who ordered the enslavement and murder of native Taino people – indigenous Carribean people – and committed other acts of brutality and sexual violence. 

What they're saying:

Meanwhile, the president calls the specific backlash to Columbus a "vicious and merciless campaign to erase our history," and places responsibility on "left-wing radicals," according to a White House proclamation.