Autore: Staiti, Claudio
Titolo: From a Symbol of Ethnic Pride to a Contested Site. The New York Columbus Monument at Columbus Circle
Periodico: Memoria e ricerca
Anno: 2026 - Volume: 81 - Fascicolo: 1 - Pagina iniziale: 35 - Pagina finale: 59

In 2017, the Christopher Columbus monument at Columbus Circle in New York became the subject of renewed public debate, denounced as a tangible symbol of the genocide of Native Americans. Although proposals were made for its removal, the committee appointed by Mayor Bill de Blasio opted instead to preserve and recontextualize it. The monument was later added by the State of New York to the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. The site also remained untouched during the wave of protests that swept the United States in 2020 following the killing of George Floyd, which led to the removal of many landmarks dedicated to Columbus across the nation. This article traces the history of the Columbus monument, erected in 1892 at the initiative of Carlo Barsotti, owner and editor of «Il Progresso Italo-Americano». Conceived as a means of legitimizing the Italian American community amid rising xenophobia, over more than a century, the monument has come to embody shifting meanings that reflect important social, political, and cultural transformations. Today, as one of Manhattan’s most recognizable urban landmarks, it prompts reflection on both the limits and possibilities of reconfiguring the city’s symbolic landscape. At the same time, it remains a site of controversy and protest – including within the Italian American community itself, part of which no longer identifies with the figure of the Genoese navigator.




SICI: 1127-0195(2026)81:1<35:FASOEP>2.0.ZU;2-Z
Testo completo: https://www.rivisteweb.it/download/article/10.14647/120213
Testo completo alternativo: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.14647/120213

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