Missouri Commission to Review Christopher Columbus Statue

A Christopher Columbus statue in a St. Louis park is being called into question about a year after a Confederate monument was removed from another park in the city.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that a commission will review whether the 130-year-old statue belongs in Tower Grove Park.

David Lauber is the park’s director of development. He says the panel will include historians, art experts, and representatives of Italian-Americans and Native Americans in St. Louis.

The statue has been repeatedly covered with graffiti over the last two years, with words including “murderer” and “Black Lives Matter” being painted onto the base.

Some say the statue represents a part of American history, while others argue it’s a reminder of oppression and shouldn’t be featured in a public space.