Mexico: the statue of Christopher Columbus replaced by that of an indigenous woman

The statue had already been removed in October 2020 by "

" to submit it "

".

Alas, it will not find its place on the roundabout of the central avenue Paseo de la Reforma, one of the main tourist arteries, very close to the ruins of the Templo Mayor, the heart of Aztec civilization.

The mayor of Mexico City, Claudia Sheinbaum, decided on September 6 to place instead a sculpture of an "

" by Mexican artist Pedro Reyes.

To read alsoChristophe Colomb, Confederates: "The unbolting of statues are symptomatic of the new identity age"

"

" she said.

For the mayor of Mexico City, the decision is an act of “

”, as well as the recognition of 500 years of “

” since the conquest.

Mexico demands apologies from Spain and Vatican

The statue's removal came soon after a call was posted on social media to bring it down, in "

" after the discovery of America, according to the campaign organizers.

The statue of Christopher Columbus, as well as the monument of the Angel of Independence, had also been marked with graffiti of protest during feminist marches.

"

" said the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) in a press release which justifies its gesture as avoiding "

, ”said INAH.

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Statues unbolted: "We must respect History while saying today the image we have of it", for Martine Aubry

The government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador says his government defends indigenous causes and has called on the Spanish government and the Vatican to issue historic apologies for the abuses committed during the conquest and evangelization of their territory.