Trump turns 2020 statue wars on their head with Columbus monument revival

The White House has installed a 13-foot statue of Christopher Columbus after the monument was torn down by rioters and tossed in Baltimore's Inner Harbor nearly six years ago amid the 2020 riots. 

"As we celebrate our Nation’s 250th anniversary of independence, the White House is proud to honor Christopher Columbus’s legendary life and legacy with a well-deserved statue on the White House grounds," White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told Fox News Digital on Monday of the new addition to the White House's grounds. 

The one-ton statue, spearheaded by the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations, is part of the Trump administration’s America250 celebrations and sits on the north side of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. 

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Rebuilt in part from salvaged pieces, the statue was installed at the White House on Sunday after Baltimore officials declined to restore it to the city’s Little Italy neighborhood, according to COPOMIAO, which is a national coalition of Italian American groups that advocate for their communities.

President Donald Trump sent a letter thanking COPOMIAO President Basil M. Russo for the statue. He said the tall figure was placed next to another piece of art called Freedom’s Charge, which he said is "a life-size sculpture representing the revolutionary struggle to win America’s independence."

"These statues represent the inspiring historical progression of the American story and will stand as an eternal memorial to courage, adventure, and the noblest aspirations of the human spirit as well as the extraordinary pride of our wonderful Italian American community," he said.

In the letter, President Trump also praised Columbus' role in shaping the nation's history.

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"Christopher Columbus was the original American hero and one of the most gallant and visionary men to ever walk the face of the Earth," he said. "Guided by steadfast prayer and unwavering fortitude and resolve, Columbus’ voyage in 1492 carried thousands of years of wisdom, philosophy, reason, and culture across the Atlantic into the Americas—paving the way for the ultimate triumph of Western civilization less than three centuries later on July 4, 1776."

"I am truly honored that this magnificent statue will now sit on the grounds of the White House," he added.

In the wake of George Floyd’s death in May 2020, statues and monuments identified by rioters as "racist" were vandalized, toppled, and destroyed across the country. A George Washington statue in Portland, Oregon, was toppled and set on fire, while Confederate monuments in Richmond, Virginia, including those of Jefferson Davis and Williams Carter Wickham, were also targeted during the protests.

Russo, in coordination with the Italian American Organizations United, led the months-long project to honor "Italian American history and culture." The original statue, unveiled in 1984 by Former President Ronald Reagan, was torn down decades later on Independence Day amid criticism over Columbus’ 1492 arrival and the deaths of millions of Indigenous people.

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"Columbus statues have long stood as symbols of pride and cultural identity for more than 18 million Americans of Italian descent," Russo said. "For over a century, Columbus’s legacy helped Italian immigrants navigate prejudice and hardship, serving as a source of unity and belonging as they built new lives in this country. Columbus Day itself emerged in the aftermath of the 1891 New Orleans lynching, when 11 Italian immigrants were killed by a mob of thousands, an event that prompted a national effort to promote the acceptance and assimilation of Italian Americans. This history remains central to why these monuments matter."

Ingle added that the administration will continue its efforts to preserve Columbus’ legacy.

"President Trump has rightly hailed Christopher Columbus as ‘the original American hero, a giant of Western civilization, and one of the most gallant and visionary men to ever walk the face of the Earth,'" he said. "In this White House, Christopher Columbus is a hero, and President Trump will ensure he’s honored as such for generations to come."