As statues of American heroes are torn down at will by Black Lives Matter mobs across the country, Italian-Americans in Philadelphia want the world to know that Christopher Columbus won’t go down without a fight. The Philadelphia statues of Columbus and former Mayor Frank Rizzo, both targets of the rioters last Summer are now at the center of dozens of lawsuits from Italian-American groups aiming to defend them from the city and the BLM mob.
Italian-Americans fight back
The Columbus statue in Philadelphia was at the center of some of the most noteworthy events which occurred during the 2020 BLM rioting.
Local Italian-Americans rallied in large numbers to protect their neighborhoods and the focal point of the action was the Philadelphia statue of Christopher Columbus, who the rioters hoped to remove from his pedestal as they did with that of Mayor Rizzo.
The BLM mob quickly discovered that at least one community in America is still willing to defend its monuments and heritage. Locals gathered with whatever they could find to protect themselves and stood firm against the attackers.
Columbus did not fall that Summer, as BLM thugs were decisively scared off by this stalwart lines of citizens who refused to kneel.
The cowardly city government, however, later rushed to the aid of the BLM vandals. The statue was covered up in place and the city moved to eliminate Columbus Day locally.
Dozens of local and national Italian-American groups are once again rallying together to fight back for their heritage, this time their weapons are lawsuits aimed directly at the perfidious Mayor of Philadelphia Jim Kenney, responsible for the attempted purge of Columbus.
Columbus won’t go quietly
Christopher Columbus has been a longtime source of pride and identity for Italian-American communities, who initially struggled to establish themselves as immigrants in the United States.
Columbus became a natural icon for Italian Americans, who found in the explorer an American hero who preceded America itself.
Attacks on the great Italian explorer have therefore been seen as attacks on all Italian-Americans, who have since ensured that Columbus holds his central place in the story of all Americans.
Italian-Americans suing Philadelphia are calling the anti-Columbus actions a case of direct discrimination against an entire ethnic and cultural group. They feel that they are being insulted and degraded in their own communities for the benefit outside radicals.
Mayor Kenney has so far dismissed the lawsuit as merit-less, being too preoccupied with pleasing his leftist friends to take any notice apparently.
Clearly Italian-Americans are one of the many ethnic communities which will get nothing but insults and attacks from Democrat politicians and agitators. This community, however, is one which will not be backing down without a fight.
