We, the people, demand that the Bloomfield Council collaborate with the township to remove the statue of Columbus located at the Historic Town Green and consider replacing it with an alternative Italian figure to celebrate Italian culture and therefore become culturally responsive to the communities of the Caribbean and Latin America, of whom Columbus is a symbol of genocide. It is important, as a diverse community, to ensure we are not idolizing figures on public properties who cannot be separated from brutal violence inflicted on the indigenous community and the invitation of the Atlantic slave trade, both stains on American history.

A fact worth mentioning is that Colorado was the first state to make Columbus Day an official holiday. And in 2020, Colorado stopped honoring Columbus Day but in their effort to uplift Italian Americans they voted to replace it with a holiday honoring the exceptional Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini. This move also marked the first paid state holiday to ever honor a woman nationally. We have the option to take similar historic actions in Bloomfield.

It is understandable that this request, if approved, may upset Italian Americans who have been conditioned to celebrate historical figures that align with the United State’s history of colonialism, oppression, slavery, and genocide. Historical records show these acts were considered abhorrent then as they are with our present day standards. These records can be forwarded, if desired. 

This petition includes additional requests. We, the people, demand that the township proclaim June second as Italian Heritage Day. The second day of June is a national holiday in Italy and can be the celebratory bridge uniting Italians and Italian Americans on shared values such as freedom and democracy.

The organizer of this petition welcomes any future discussion on alternative Italian historical figures to be celebrated. One recommendation on the list of notably celebrated Italian historical figures would be Filippo Brunelleschi, whose architectural brilliance contributed to the dome built on top of the United State’s White House. We thank you for your attention to this matter and ask that you consider the message you choose to send to our future generations with your response.

Land acknowledgment: Bloomfield, NJ is the occupied, seized, and stolen ancestral territory of the Yantecaw People, a subtribe of the Lenni-Lenape.