NOT JUST STONE: WHITE PLAINS COLUMBUS STATUE MUST REMAIN!
 
The Antonio Meucci Lodge #213, Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSIA) of White Plains and many Westchester Italian American groups oppose any attempts to remove the statue of Christopher Columbus in White Plains, NY.  The statue in Tibbets Brook Park at Lake Street and North Broadway was donated to the City by our founders in 1915.  Carved in Carrara marble under the supervision of renowned local sculptor Peter Celli, it is an exceptional work of art.  It has tremendous symbolic value to the active and civic-minded White Plains Italian American community here, representing the difficult—and often brutal—Italian immigrant struggle our forefathers endured to achieve the American dream.  It is a symbol of the hope, courage and perseverance they were inspired to have by Columbus' world-changing voyages as they worked towards that dream.  Fortunately, our Italian American immigrant forefathers succeeded and their descendants—us—are doing the same, contributing not only to our own ethnic group but to our community here in White Plains as well.    
 
Recently, social justice activists here have taken to blaming Columbus for many of today’s social ills.  They call him a “colonizer” while giving the English settlers—Peter Disbrow, John Coe and Thomas Studwell—who actually purchased the land from the Siwanoy tribe in 1660 a pass.  Even King George II, who granted the City’s original non-native settlers a royal patent for the land in 1721 eludes their wrath.  Why are they blaming a 15th-century Genoan explorer who never set foot in White Plains for starting all their issues when vetted historical accounts provide the names and deeds of the actual catalysts? 
 
Those who want the statue removed in favor of honoring the indigenous people never even say their names: the Weckquaeskeck, according to the City’s website.  These activists seem to have no idea that “White Plains” is translated from “Quarropas,” the name the Weckquaeskeck gave the area.  Isn’t naming the City after their native word the ultimate honor?  Also, Quarropas is an actual street in White Plains where the federal courthouse is located.  Isn’t locating one of the City's most prestigious buildings on a street named for their native word another significant honor?  Yet, they begrudge us our 20 square feet of statue space!  
    
Every year our Order gathers at the statue, which has been beautifully maintained by our members and the City, to remember the many things our ancestors did to ensure a better life for themselves and their descendants.  We remember that they came here impoverished, many of them war refugees, having made the 4,285-mile-long journey across the Atlantic in cramped and filthy steerage sections all the while thinking “if Columbus could do it in 1492, we can do this, too.”  We remember how they worked long hours at the dirtiest, lowest wage-paying jobs to build Westchester County’s infrastructure, including the Kensico Dam and the Croton Reservoir.  And we especially remember—and are incredibly proud of—how they served and died in the wars our country fought to protect the freedoms of all Americans.  This includes the freedom to respectfully disagree about who or what inspires us. 
 
Removing the statue of Columbus does nothing to help resolve the tensions and difficulties faced by a modern society trying to interpret the past.  What it does do is delegitimize the City’s Italian Americans’ history, stories and struggles, and we have just as much a right to have these represented as any other group.  We work hard every day—just like our forefathers did—to make the City a better place for all of us.  
 
White Plains Mayor Roach has said that “White Plains has always been a city for everyone; we have to remember that and it has to stay that way."  He has said that one of his government's main goals is to maintain the ethnic and economic diversity that White Plains has always had.  In 2017, the statue was designated a historical landmark by unanimous vote by the White Plains Historical Preservation Commission and it needs to remain where it is.  Help us to STOP THE INSANITY AND SIGN OUR PETITION!   NO DONATIONS AS THEY DO NOT GO TO THE ORDER.   

SUPPORTED BY:

The Westchester Coalition of Italian American Organizations

Alessandro Manzoni Lodge #258, OSIA - Mamaroneck, NY

Anthony Maggiacomo Lodge #2320, OSIA - Yonkers, NY

Giuseppe Garibaldi Lodge #2583, OSIA - Tuckahoe, NY

John D. Calandra Lodge #2600, OSIA - Yonkers, NY

Le Amiche Lodge #2550, OSIA - Yonkers, NY

The Mount Pleasant Italian American Association

Casa Calabria, New Rochelle, NY