| George Washington | |
|---|---|
 The statue in 2015 | |
 | |
| Artist | Lorado Taft |
| Year | 1909 |
| Type | Sculpture |
| Subject | George Washington |
| Location | Seattle, Washington, United States |
| 47°39′22″N 122°18′40″W / 47.656072°N 122.311131°W | |
George Washington, also known as the President George Washington Monument,[1] is a bronze sculpture of George Washington by Lorado Taft, installed at the University of Washington campus in Seattle's University District, in the U.S. state of Washington. The statue was dedicated on Flag Day, June 14, 1909, during the Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition.[2]
Controversy
editA number of student led organizations at the University of Washington campus have called for the removal of the George Washington statue. Most notably, the University's Black Student Union (BSU) and the University of Washington Black Lives Matter coalition (UW BLM) have publicly spoken out against the statue. UW BLM staged a month-long protest of the statue in August of 2020, where the group spray-painted the statue every day to induce a response from the administration at the University of Washington. [3] As of October 16th, 2020 there has been no response from the University regarding the removal of the George Washington statue.
The UW Daily newspaper has also called for the removal of the statue in an op-ed. Noting that a petition to remove the statue has reached over 3,000 signatures. This petition is asking for the George Washington statue to be replaced with a Black Power fist and to rename the cafe near the statue from the By George Cafe to the Juneteenth Cafe.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "George Washington, (sculpture)". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
- ^ "George Washington Statue". University of Washington. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
- ^ Aug 14, Jasmyne Keimig •; Pm, 2020 at 12:10. "UW Protesters Embark on Month-Long Art Installation at George Washington Statue". The Stranger. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Daily, Hannah Krieg The. "The petition to remove the George Washington statue and the larger conversation of a white-centric campus". The Daily of the University of Washington. Retrieved 2020-10-16.