Oregon students demand removal of pioneer statue

6/21/19
 
   < < Go Back
 
from Campus Reform,
6/20/19:

University of Oregon students and faculty are demanding the removal of an American pioneer statue on its 100-year anniversary.

The statue depicts a pioneer standing on a rock with a rifle slung over its shoulder and a whip in its right hand. Although no suspects were identified, the statue was vandalized in April with red spray paint on its crotch and whip, according to the Daily Emerald.

Sculptor Alexander Phimister Proctor, who designed the statue installed at the university in 1919, aimed to celebrate the achievements of pioneers

According to the Daily Emerald, Bret Gilbert, co-leader of NASU, organized a protest with the hope of getting a list of signatures in support of the statue’s removal.

“A lot of our students feel oppressed by the statue. I know when I walk under it I feel very inferior,” Gilbert said. “I don’t feel that way when I’m at other places on campus. I don’t think that’s what the university community wants us to feel like when we’re here.”

More From Campus Reform: