Columbus Statue in Grant Park Removed Late Last Night

In a surprise move, Mayor Lightfoot removes Columbus statue from Grant Park (Roosevelt and Columbus):

Mayor Lori Lightfoot ordered the statues of Christopher Columbus removed from Chicago’s Grant and Arrigo parks overnight, in part to avoid another high-profile confrontation between police and protesters like the one that happened last week.

Not all Italian American leaders in Chicago are on board with the decision, but it has received the blessing of some groups, sources said. By taking the statues down, Lightfoot may draw criticism from those who believe she caved to activist demands.

Later Friday morning, the mayor’s office released a statement saying that she had both statues “temporarily removed ... until further notice.”

“This step is about an effort to protect public safety and to preserve a safe space for an inclusive and democratic public dialogue about our city’s symbols,” the statement said. “In addition, our public safety resources must be concentrated where they are most needed throughout the city, and particularly in our South and West Side communities.”

It's an interesting development and interesting use of "temporarily" as we're curious what would warrant a reverse in this action.  

We do understand the rationale that the deployment of resources to areas of more need vs. this statue is warranted.  We will see what happens...