After Confederate statues and monuments were toppled across the country, the next frontier may be likenesses of historical figures tied to the deaths of Native Americans.
Arcata, California, is poised to take down a eight-and-a-half-foot bronze likeness of William McKinley, the 25th president, who has been accused of directing the mass murder of Native people at home and abroad.
The California city is known for its progressive leanings: it was the first U.S. city to ban the sale of genetically modified foods, the first to elect a majority Green Party city council, and an early leader in marijuana farming before pot was legalized. If Arcata does pull the statue, it would be the most significant move in an emerging movement to remove monuments that honor people who helped lead what Native groups describe as a “centuries-long war against their very existence,” writes The Los Angeles Times. California is home of the largest Native American population in the country. The state contains more than 100 federally recognized tribes.
This push follows the movement this summer which saw the removal of many Confederate memorials in the South and elsewhere. Activists who viewed Confederate statues as celebrating slavery cheered the changes, but many white conservatives in the South viewed the trend as an attack on their heritage.
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