The 145-year-old Columbus statue, located in Philadelphia’s historic Marconi Plaza, will once again see the light of day.
On Friday Judge Paula Patrick ordered the city of Philadelphia to immediately remove the wooden box that concealed the statue, and permit the installation of a clear structure that will protect the monument from future vandalism.
The motion to remove the plywood box was raised by Philadelphia attorney George Bochetto, Esq., who also spearheaded a winning lawsuit that blocked the removal of the statue from the plaza.
Philadelphia Mayor James Kenney ordered that the statue be concealed and removed following last year’s riots over police brutality.
In August, Judge Patrick slammed Kenney’s removal order, writing: “It is baffling to this court as to how the City of Philadelphia wants to remove the Statue without any legal basis. The city’s entire argument and case is devoid of any legal foundation.”
Kenney, earlier this year and without any public input, unilaterally changed Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day.
Bochetto, on behalf of the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations, Philadelphia Councilman Mark Squilla and the 1492 Society, is leading a federal lawsuit that seeks to reverse the name change and declare Italian Americans as a protected class (a legal argument that would set a powerful legal precedent and help shield the Columbus holiday and statues across the country).
Bochetto also led a winning lawsuit last month regarding the 106-foot Columbus obelisk at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia.
In June 2020, Delaware River Waterfront Corporation (DRWC) workers boarded up the bottom of the obelisk to conceal the navigator’s name.
More than a year later, the “chalkboards” plastered across the base will be removed now that the DRWC and the America 500 Anniversary Corporation — the organization responsible for the construction of the monument — have reached a settlement over the matter.
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