Pittsburgh Art Commission recommends removal of Columbus statue from Schenley Park

The Pittsburgh Art Commission unanimously recommended removal of the statue of Christopher Columbus that has been in Schenley Park for over 60 years.

The recommendation, made during a Wednesday meeting of the commission, puts the issue before Mayor Bill Peduto, who will consider the issue and make a decision.

The mayor’s decision will then be subject to another vote by the commission.

“Mayor Peduto thanks the Art Commission for their diligence. He will review their recommendation and the testimony from residents and issue his response soon,” mayoral spokesman Tim McNulty said.

The decision comes despite vocal lobbying by members of the city’s Italian American community and the national Italian Sons and Daughters of America. They view Columbus as an Italian icon and the statue as symbolic of Italian heritage in the city.

Others, including Native Americans and members of other ethnic groups, called for removal of the statue because of Columbus’ legacy of starting what they called a genocide of the people who lived in the Caribbean after he landed in 1492.

The Italian Sons and Daughters of America will fight the matter in court if the statue is removed, said George Bochetto, a Philadelphia-based attorney who represents the group.

Bochetto also represents a group of Italian-Americans who are fighting a similar situation in Philadelphia.

The statue, one of Pittsburgh artist Frank Vittor’s most famous works, was installed in 1958 in Schenley Park near Phipps Conservatory. It was put there after 49 years of work by the city’s Italian community, according to the Pittsburgh Public Art & Civic Design Division.

The statue’s placement and fate is governed by an ordinance that city council passed in 1955, Bochetto said.

“It shall be maintained in perpetuity by the City of Pittsburgh,” the ordinance says, according to Bochetto. That means it can’t be removed without the ordinance being changed by council, he said.

He will fight the matter in court if the statue is removed, Bochetto said.

Italian Sons and Daughters of America President Basil M. Russo also spoke in favor of keeping the statue because of its symbolic value to Italian heritage.

Russo also called on Art Commissioners Sarika Goulatia and Richard Parsakian to abstain from votes on the matter because they spoke on a radio report about why the statue should be removed before Wednesday’s meeting.

Both commissioners voted in favor of removing that statue in the 5-0 vote that also was supported by commissioners Kary Arimoto-Mercer, Kilolo Luckett and Andrew Moss. There are two vacant seats on the commission.

“Our process is not a process of popular vote,” Moss said.

The commission received 5,272 comments to a query of the public about the issue.

Of those comments, 1,937 said the statue should be removed; 1,818 said it should stay in place; 1,445 said it should be replaced; 65 said it should be altered and seven didn’t make a choice, but otherwise provided comment.

Although the commission voted that the statue should be removed, the conversation among Italian Americans and other ethnic groups should continue in Pittsburgh, Goulatia said.

“There needs to be a dialogue, build some empathy,” she said. “Any human being you put on a pedestal is problematic.”

People need to discuss whether the statue should be displayed somewhere as a work of art, with proper acknowledgement of the way that although Columbus is revered by Italians, his legacy also is one that others find offensive, Moss said.

The commissioners also agreed the city needs to find ways to honor Italians and other ethnic groups with art in the city.

“Christopher Columbus doesn’t uphold the values of the constitution and human beings,” Luckett said. “There are so many ways to celebrate who we are.”