A statue of Christopher Columbus in the southern end of Central Park was defaced sometime between late Monday and Tuesday morning, with the statue’s hands painted red and the words “Hate Will Not Be Tolerated” written on the base. Under those words another message was written: #somethingiscoming.
An NYPD spokesman said the defacement was discovered at 7 a.m. on Tuesday. The statue is near 65th Street and Center Drive in the park. “No suspects at this time,” he said. “It’s still under investigation.”
I saw this in #centralpark this morning. It's a good look for #Columbus , blood on his hands. #hatewillnotbetolerated #SomethingsComing pic.twitter.com/SYnEP7W9k7
— Christen Clifford (@cd_clifford) September 12, 2017
It’s not yet clear who vandalized the statue. There’s been an ongoing controversy about statues since the Charlottesville white nationalist march last month. Mayor de Blasio has convened a panel to determine what to do with potentially “hateful” statues in the city. Although Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito raised the possibility of removing the Columbus statue at Columbus Circle, de Blasio’s spokesman has said “there’s no plan to remove the Columbus statue.”
The #somethingscoming hashtag is ominous, but it’s still not clear what it means. The hashtag was also seen on a wooden gate in Brooklyn on Monday:
Photo by a tipster who was walking her dog when she saw the statue and wishes to remain anonymous.
Such a decent, mature, respectful, and convincing way to get your message across. Actions like this are cowardly, threatening, and just as full of hate as what you are trying to speak out against. Keep it up and we will surely unite one day.
Defacing public property is not exercising free speech. Feels more like an excuse to spray paint stuff
Apparently, “native americans” were not the first “indigenous” people here in North America. Evidence is mounting that they pushed out a previous population of European-centric origin:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-very-first-americans-may-have-had-european-roots-5517714/?no-ist
https://www.pbs.org/saf/1406/segments/1406-4.htm
https://sciencenordic.com/dna-links-native-americans-europeans
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/radical-theory-of-first-americans-places-stone-age-europeans-in-delmarva-20000-years-ago/2012/02/28/gIQA4mriiR_story.html
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/09/0903_030903_bajaskull.html
https://www.google.com/search?q=europeans+were+the+first+americans&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&channel=sb
The possibility that a young boy who died 24,000 years ago may have had traces of European ancestry shouldn’t negate the Native Americans or their history as we know it.
Cat,
You miss Don Honda’s point.
Every group pushes other groups. It’s always been the way of the world. (And that’s not to minimize the way Native Americans were murdered and otherwise disgracefully mistreated.)
To think that Columbus is to blame is infantile.
But what we can do is stop our current hate and destruction.
So please stop chasing your own tail.
Dog, i think you miss Cat’s point.
Don Honda claims that the Native Americans “pushed out” the previous Euro settlers. that is not what his links nor the existing evidence shows.
he is attempting to trivialize the genocide of Native Americans by saying, in effect, “they did it too.”
except they didn’t.
I think defacing public property is actually to honor Columbus’s legacy, for he inaugurated the great Euro-American tradition of stealing communal property and killing its rightful owners.
I think the Dutch and then English were more responsible for our area. Why aren’t Dutch churches like Marble Collegiate or Episcopal churches like Trinity Wall Street treated this way… I think it’s selective knee-jerk politics and not thinking things through.
The “outrage” over statues reminds me of the question asked about Shakespeare in modern times. Should we no longer perform The Merchant Of Venice because one of the characters is portrayed in a very stereotypical light? Shakespeare was the product of his time. A less enlightened time. There is much to be learned from the way people acted and thought in past times, which are invariably less enlightened than the time in which we live at present. The same thing applies to Columbus. He may have done some bad things, but he wasn’t operating in a 21st century mindset. This is history. Many barbarous things have happened in the past and we can learn from them. Trying to erase statues of historical figures from less enlightened times is silly and hysterical.
This is actually the best argument I’ve heard! It’s so accurate. They were less enlightened. It’s not logical to judge people on today’s standards. It’s just not realistic.
Nukleopatra, THANK YOU for a mature and well-explained argument against the current trend to erase any history deemed un-PC.
Unfortunately, the morons responsible for this vandalism:
1. see themselves as heroes of the radical left; and
2. have little or no respect for any opinion, no matter how well-expressed, if it differs in any way from their own.
Hopefully, they’ll be caught, possibly because they may have posted a video of themselves committing this desecration…just to get “likes” from their peers.
Oh give them time, they’ll get to Shakespeare eventually.
Lisa- You killed it with one. Hashtag LOL LMAO or whatever it is that goes today.
Is there anything that would make you reject someone from the past? Is it simply the fact that people in the past thought they were good, so you think so too, or is there some principle that you follow? I think it is important that we all – those who defend the statues, and those that oppose them – think about how to distinguish between what is intolerable now, though it was acceptable in the past, and what remains tolerable even though it is mingled with something unacceptable.
This is a serious question. Clearly, there are things that we all agree can no longer stand, and other things that we all agree remain entirely acceptable. Then there is a great range of things in between. On what principled basis do we decide whether something that is offensive or annoying for a subset of society has to be removed – is it simple numbers, the tyranny of the majority? Is it the intensity of the offense? Does it depend on why the person is celebrated and what the offense was?
I’ve proposed my own rudimentary principles on an earlier post; it would be beneficial if others were to offer theirs.
Disgusting hateful loser(s) who did this. The brainwashing of so many people under the age of 30 or so that this is not only acceptable, but to be applauded, is beyond depressing to witness.
Columbus was either directly or in-part responsible for murdering tens of thousands of people. I’m not sure he should receive a free pass for ‘not operating on a 21st century mindset’. But then again, I’m under the age of 30 so who can really trust my opinion anyhow.
There is plenty of room for Columbus in a museum or history book, not so much as a celebratory statue (though I don’t agree with the tactic used here by someone in their 50s). You don’t see many statues of Stalin or Moa Ze Dong do you? While not the same scale, I’d put forth that the same argument of not celebrating mass murderers applies here.
It is pure ignorance of history and the progress (or lack of progress) of humanity to claim that every person past or present can or should be perfect. “Westside2” neith you or I or anyone else is perfect. Let’s scrap the Declaration of Independence because so many British were killed. Get an education, please.
Can you point out where I claimed that every person past or present can or should be perfect? Sorry I can’t catch that in my post, if you can plase educate me on that I’d appreciate it. Or you can just dismiss my opinion as uneducated to serve your opinion.
What about FDR? He in-prisoned thousands of Japanese-Americans. Should we get destroy the Four Freedoms Park?
We can play this game forever… It’s a dumb game. Our history is filled with people who did bad things at times.
Yes, the game can be played all day, but it’s an important (painful) game to be played so that mass murderers are not celebrated. The point is not that anyone with a memoriam needs to be perfect, just that we can’t assume statues already in place deserve to stay solely because they are already there. I refuse to accept that as the criteria for whether someone should be recognized. That’s all I’m saying.
Ok, so you tell me who deserves a statue and I’ll tell you all about their bad points and how some might be offended.
If you are ok with no statues and no honors for anyone, I’ll get on board. Until then… the business of determining who gets their statue taken down because they did something we wouldn’t do today is dumb.
This is the end result of the totalitarianism that the new left has created. It doesn’t stop at identity politics or virtue signalling or preventing people from speaking. Next stop if you don’t conform is the gulag.
Are you Fascist?
If the person who did this truly is protesting what he (or she) perceives as hate then he is using hate to do it and playing into the hands of those who oppose his ideas. Not an effective strategy in getting others to see your way of thinking.
Who gives a rat’s ass about this. Yes by all means we should celebrate European colonialism.
Um, if it were not for “Colonialism”, we would not all be here!
you have a very narrow view of who “we all” are. which is perhaps the point the anti-Columbus people are making.
I’m amazed at the fact that the perps did it in front of Time Warner Cable and Trump Tower buildings. Not to mention it is Columbus Circle which is a very public place. What kind of security we have? This handiwork took some time and nobody noticed anything? Not security, not the police?
This statue is in Central Park at the south end of the mall, and not the same one as in the middle of Columbus Circle that is 70ft in the air… Not minimizing the vandalism, but clarifying the location of the statue
I don’t agree with this (as I’ve said previously). I do question whether it is likely to be Millenials or “core” liberal activists, versus people on the fringe – i.e., the left-wing equivalent of, say, the right-wing protestors who stand and shout vile things to people carrying out peaceful protests.
THIS is why Trump won and why he will likely win again.
A growing number of people on the far left have shown greater and greater intolerance, be it for student’s Halloween costume or a city’s public monuments.
What this person should be doing is cleaning after the monuments he “likes” and leaving those he does not “like” alone. Defacing and damaging them only costs the rest of us tax money and makes our city look like crap (more so than it already does).
Although I come at it from a different perspective, I actually agree that this sort of act pushes a number of people who are on the fence on substance over into the conservative camp. There are studies showing a fairly strong correlation between conservative political leanings and a desire for “order”/fear of disobedience. This sort of act gives those who fear disorder something to fear. As a result, it is ineffective – unless you are seeking to push people to the conservative side. It is a pretty common false flag move. So, maybe it is one of the people on your side doing it to push your buttons. It seems to be working on you.
Now we have to hear the false flag narrative? Pathetic. This is the work of Antifa garbage, who are cowards and bullies.
It clearly works on you too.
I’m not saying it IS. False flag – only that your reactions are completely predictable, and so it would make sense to use it for that purpose.
Love it, that’s the New York I remember
When do statues of MLK get vandalized because he was against same-sex marriage? Such “hate will not be tolerated”.
As disgusting as it gets. Twits on twitter endorsing just as bad.
https://www.pottsmerc.com/opinion/20170903/dave-neese-cleaning-up-our-historical-act
DAVE NEESE: Cleaning up our historical act
“We must seize this opportunity to indulge ourselves in smug moral righteousness, in “virtue-signaling,” as it has come to be named. “
Boy, if the Neanderthals ever get any traction, we’re all dead in the water.
There is some evidence that there were populations of Neanderthals in the western hemisphere who were later displaced (killed?) by Native American Indians. In reading some of these comments, I could swear that some of these Neanderthals are still wandering around the Upper West Side.
MAMA MIA!!!!
Seriously though, I like it better than the little kid standing in front of the iconic charging bull statue on Wall St. They need to take that down…yesterday.
I love street art but people should never deface another artist’s work. That is despicable, and often criminal, behavior.
This is not graffiti or street art though, just politically inspired vandalism. Lock’em up!!! or give them a gallery show. I don’t really care that much. There are more important things for the NYPD to be doing.
I am excited by the #somethingiscoming message.
something’s coming
I don’t know
What it is
But it is
Gonna be great!
I love West Side Story!
Lock em up………………..
Elements of the Left (not everyone on the Left) have become increasingly totalitarian, intolerant, and even violent. Defacing statues, instituting a sort of thought police on university campuses, slandering their political opponents as racists and Nazis, assaulting Trump supporters, rioting at Berkeley, etc. I hope that the majority of people repudiate this extremist behavior.
I think you can expect moderate liberals to start disclaiming this sort of thing about the same time that moderate Republicans start disclaiming some of the malarky of the Trump devotees. May that day come soon.
Shameful. Not a religious fanatic–please let the #somethingscoming be Jesus.
Any statues of Bill Clinton?? He bombed Serbia ya know.
This is an entirely different from the statues of \Jefferson Davie and Robert E. Lee who fought against THIS COUNTRY. They were traitors, not heroes. They have been the center of
neo nazis who are relying against the U.S.A. He was an explo\rer r. He found this continent. There were no countries here at the time. There was no U.S,.A. He could not have been a traitor to a country that didn’t exist. How could he own slaves? Where would he keep them/ and for what purpose? Do Italians gather around his statue with Nazi flags to harass and attack New Yorkers because they think it is their right to own other human beings? Lee was a citiznen of an extant country which supported his education at West Point. To compare Christopher Columbus with Robert E. Lee is a very very long stretch, The situation is so different that it is a totally ridiculous comparison. Go learn you history before you make such a statement.
Columbus didn’t discover anything. It was already here. I refer you to comedian Flip Wilson’s routine on this subject.
How sick
The “hate will not be tolerated” crowd is pretty hate filled. Vandalism isn’t an argument or a discussion it’s violence.
I think this act was stupid, but to equate it with violence seems unnecessarily dramatic.
It seems the perpetrators of this act are getting the response from many that they wanted.
America is the most blessed nation.
Why is there so much hate?
It is very sad.
Sadder when you see the politicians navigating the great ocean of ours without rudder.
Because we are a very violent people. The nation was founded by the gun and so on.
The reason for the statues of Columbus is because it’s in “Columbus” Circle area! The people are talking and acting it seems we should change the name of the Circle. Not! This is getting out of hand ( no pun intended)
I’d like a statue of the mayor to be erected, so someone could come along and deface HIM.
And I am a native New Yorker, living here 62 years.
You can disagree with me if you choose, but I’m still entitled ( yup ) to free speech.
So you are someone who believes in vandalizing statues when it’s a statue of someone who you don’t like?
Didn’t you just support this vandalism a few comments ago?? What is your deal, “Mark”??
Your comments are not only inconsistent and illogical but they are beginning to become tiresome. Oh well, but I’m sure OriginalMark isn’t too happy about it.:)
There’s like 8 Mark’s on this site, I’m the one who could care less about a little paint, which can removed in a matter of hours, to remind us all about the genocide one of our honored “heroes” committed. Structures, like bridges, named after people with problematic histories can be renamed. Statues that are literal pedestals we place dishonorable figures upon should be questioned and possibly removed. I applaud this current generation for doing what countless before were too timid to do.
I agree with you UWSHebrew.
Mark — you sound like an old, frustrated hippie.
Sorry -I meant to type “couldn’t care less”.
So….. each time since November 2016 that we’ve seen literal swastikas that UWS property owners have encountered and had to remove from their property, NYPD has downplayed it. “Ho hum, no big deal folks, probably only a mentally ill individual.”
No vandalism is acceptable, but I sure don’t appreciate NYPD signaling that they’re shrugging off swastikas. It’ll be interesting to watch their compared focus.
i find it ironic that one of the commenters who continually introduces racist thinking and memes into the WSR comments section is now complaining about the defacing of the Columbus status.
Where will this end. Should we tear down the George Washington Bridge? I don’t think so. How about the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial in D.C. I wonder if these people would be willing to tear up every $1 and #5 bill that they get for payment. If they do I hope I’m around to pick up the pieces.
I love how we instill today’s values and expectations to a period hundreds of years ago. Wussification of America at its finest.
I agree with you Big Earl.
Columbus was a product of his time and we should not be too harsh with our ancestors. Even only if we do not want our descendants to be harsh with us. Who knows how many stupid things we do now!
https://youtu.be/EZTtsKgJDdA
Flip Wilson on Christopher Columbus
Poor little entitled snowflakes.
I agree with you Tina.