The famous statue of Thomas Jefferson that has resided in New York City Hall for the last 187 years was removed this week after members of the local council slammed the Founding Father for owning slaves in the 18th century.
“Art handlers packed up an 884-pound statue of Jefferson in a wooden crate Monday after a mayoral commission voted to banish the likeness of the nation’s third president from City Hall, where it’s resided for nearly two centuries — because he owned slaves,” reports the New York Post.
“About a dozen workers with Marshall Fine Arts spent several hours carefully removing the painted plaster monument from its pedestal inside the City Council chambers and surrounding it with sections of foam and wooden boards,” added the newspaper.
Thomas Jefferson statue removed from City Hall after 187 years https://t.co/kzEHeGmNb8 pic.twitter.com/NL06oPOxkt
— New York Post (@nypost) November 23, 2021
“Removing a monument without a public conversation about why it’s happening is useless. New Yorkers all need to talk about who we want to honor and why,” said Erin Thompson, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
“Moving this statue doesn’t mean New Yorkers will forget who Thomas Jefferson was — but some of them might learn from the controversy that the man who wrote ‘all men are created equal’ owned over 600 of his fellow humans,” Thompson said.
Read the full report at the NY Post.
LIMOUSINE LIBERALS: Bill de Blasio Attends Ultra-Elite Met Gala in Designer Tux as NYC Spirals
Outgoing New York Mayor Bill de Blasio attended the ultra-elite Met Gala this week, wearing a designer tuxedo at the star-studded event featuring the Big Apple’s wealthiest and most-connected people.
“Mayor de Blasio wore a suit by Brooklyn designer Dreu Beckemberg and his wife, Chirlane McCray, also represented the borough in a Fe Noel gown and Pamela Love jewelry,” posted Vogue Magazine on Twitter.
.@NYCMayor wore a suit by Brooklyn designer Dreu Beckemberg and his wife, Chirlane McCray, also represented the borough in a Fe Noel gown and Pamela Love jewelry https://t.co/iEsS5zNOii
— Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) September 14, 2021
“While de Blasio has previously called the Met gala ‘not my cup of tea,’ it may well have been the return-to-normal that this year’s gala represented that compelled him. De Blasio and his family’s ensembles were clearly chosen with an eye toward New York pride, with the mayor wearing a suit by Brooklyn designer Dreu Beckemberg and McCray also embracing the borough in a Fe Noel gown and Pamela Love jewelry,” added the iconic fashion magazine.
“The mayor made the decision to attend months ago in one of his hours-long economic recovery war room meetings led by Lorraine Grillo. He wanted to highlight a local designer who had been able to make it through the pandemic,” spokesperson Bill Neidhardt told Politico, adding, “It’s a notable way to grab people’s attention and highlight the return of the city’s fashion industry jobs.”
Read the full report at Vogue.
NYC SPIRALS: 112 Injured By Gunfire in 9 Days, Local Says ‘Haven’t Seen Anything Like This in My Life’
Violence and gunfire continued to plague New York City since anti-police protests started back in June, with authorities confirming more than 100 people have been shot in the last 9 days.
“There have been 112 victims in 83 shootings over a nine-day period ending Saturday, according to police. Most of those shot were expected to survive, but at least six people have died in the past week and others suffered serious or critical injuries,” reports 1010Wins.
The NYPD on Sunday released this info detailing the nine-day stretch of shootings.
Friday, 6/19 – 8 shooting incidents with 9 victims.
Saturday, 6/20 -18 shooting incidents with 24 victims.
Sunday, 6/21 – 2 shooting incidents with 5 victims.
Monday, 6/22 – 11 shooting incidents with 17 victims.
Tuesday, 6/23 – 10 shooting incidents with 10 victims.
Wednesday, 6/24 – 3 shooting incidents with 5 victims.
Thursday, 6/25 – 5 shooting incidents with 8 victims.
Friday, 06/26 – 9 incidents with 10 victims.
Saturday, 06/27 – 17 incidents with 24 victims.
“It has just been ridiculous how it has taken place, because we saw a serious decline over a five year period and we have working relationships to work with our police department with their community policing,” said one local leader in Brooklyn. “Now look at what we’re faced with. I have not seen anything like this in my entire life living here in New York.”
Read the full report here.