Newark, Denver, Richmond, Chicago, San Antonio, St. petersburg, New Haven, San Francisco, Boston-the list goes on. Do you know what all these cities have in common? Sadly, they have all suffered the loss of their Christopher Columbus monuments and statues, either by outright vandalism or misguided political efforts to appease other constituencies at the expense of the Italian American community.
To date, over 36 Christopher Columbus statues have been toppled and many more are in danger of being lost potentially forever. Even in places which do not have monuments to the great navigator, many local and state governments have removed columbus Day from their calendar. Our immigrant ancestors’ success in America built those statues and secured Columbus Day as a holiday, not only to honor one man but to serve as an ongoing monument to the contributions of the ltalian American community in the United States.
Here at NIAF, we believe that Christopher Columbus’courageous voyage was the catalyst that initiated over 500 years of immigration to the Americas by people from every corner of the Earth-all of whom were seeking a better life for their families. We proudly support Columbus Day and oppose all efforts to remove monuments which celebrate ltalian American pride.
NIAF fights for our community every day, but we need your help to do so. We are a non-profit organization and receive no government funding. Your generous support of our 2023 Columbus Day Campaign will help us to fund both concrete efforts to repair and replace Columbus statues across America, as well as educational efforts to promote a fair and reasonable assessment of Columbus’ legacy. Please see the enclosed contribution form and return envelope to add your voice to our Columbus Day Campaign today.
