Decolonising history - 11th October 2021

The bronze statue of Italian voyager Christopher Columbus, high on its plinth in Mexico City, is to be replaced by the figure of an indigenous Olmec woman.

The announcement, by Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, stated that following its removal, Columbus’s bronze likeness would be relocated to the Parque America in the city’s fashionable Polanco neighbourhood.

Throughout the United States and Latin America, protestors have toppled statues of the Italian-born explorer, sponsored by the Spanish crown to undertake voyages of exploration in the late 15th century. Columbus is now considered by many to epitomise brutality and colonisation, given that his landing in the Americas precipitated centuries of European invasion and subjugation.

The announcement of the statue’s replacement was timed to coincide with a ceremony marking the International Day of the Indigenous Woman. The mayor clarified that rather than being an attempt to erase history, this was a restorative measure ensuring justice for those who have suffered most. While she assured the public that the Columbus statue would be relocated and not discarded, Sheinbaum insisted that pre-existing civilisations should be celebrated rather than an unjust conquest.

Acclaimed artist and social commentator Pedro Reyes has been commissioned to create the new sculpture of a woman from the Olmec civilisation, a culture that flourished in the Gulf of Mexico from 1200 to 400 BCE, to take pride of place on Reforma Avenue.

The Columbus statue was dismounted last year, ahead of 12th October 2020, traditionally known as Columbus Day, which has been renamed Indigenous Peoples’ Day in many US states. This is to honour Native American peoples and commemorate their histories and cultures.

Similarly in Latin America, the day has been renamed Day of the Race, Day of Hispanicity, Day of the Americas and the Day of Indigenous Resistance.