Petition Circulating To Save Utica Christopher Columbus Statue

The call for the removal of certain statues has reached Utica as one group has circulated a Change.org petition to take down the Christopher Columbus statue on The Parkway. Another wants it to stay up.

A petition authored by Mariesa Cozza is calling for the removal of the statue saying,

We believe it is high time that the City of Utica is more inclusive of the original inhabitants of Upstate New York, indigenous people who were massacred by colonizers like Columbus. Utica has a rich history filled with diversity and inclusion, and this statue contradicts the values our city claims to stand for.

Following the release of this petition another individual began circulating a counter petition. Vincent Scalise started the petition citing bias against Italian-Americans as the reason some want the statue removed. Scalise writes,

History is not to be erased but remembered and learned from good, bad or indifferent. I feel that if we as Americans continue to erase our history I fear that we will turn this country into a disorganized, unsafe and uncontrollable mess that will destroy the American way of life for ever.

The petition in favor of the removal of Christopher Columbus as of Wednesday had 778 signatures out of 1,000. The petition in favor of keeping the statue is only seeking 100 signatures and has 75.

We have seen the continued call for the removal of certain historical markers, statues and even the renaming of certain military bases or streets. The main argument is whether or not history should be erased or learned from. What are your thoughts?