Chicago Christopher Columbus Statue at Center of Protests Has Been Taken Down

A statue of Christopher Columbus that demonstrators have been trying to topple in a Chicago park for the past week has been taken down, on the order of Mayor Lori Lightfoot. It was hoisted off its pedestal in the dead of night, around 3 a.m.

Two hours later, a second Columbus statue marked with graffiti was removed from the city's Little Italy neighborhood. 

Lightfoot said the statues have been "temporarily removed...until further notice" because of "demonstrations that became unsafe for both protesters and police." Last week, some protesters were seen hurling bricks and frozen water bottles at officers.

Lightfoot herself came under siege at her own house as a huge, peaceful crowd demanded the defunding of police. Other big city mayors, including Los Angeles, Seattle, Oakland and New York, have also seen protests come to their own homes in recent weeks.

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