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As 2021 comes to a close, the statue of Christopher Columbus remains standing in Marconi Plaza. And as it has for the past year and a half, it remains entirely enclosed in a wooden box. The legal battle over whether the City of Philadelphia is allowed to relocate the statue could take another year or two to reach a conclusion, said the lawyer argui...

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Is the art too saccharine? Obsolete on arrival? Does it tell only an Italian story and not one that reflects the diversity of Wooster Square today? Has the community not truly been engaged in the process? And where in the original charge to artists a year ago was there permission to pave over more than a thousand square feet of precious green space...

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Attorneys for the City of Pittsburgh said that a lawsuit filed against it last year to save the Christopher Columbus statue at Schenley Park ought to be dismissed because the organization that filed it doesn’t have standing. In documents filed last week in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, the city said the group suing it, the Italian Sons and D...

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The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) is now accepting essays for the NIAF NCCA Christopher Columbus Essay Contest. Since 1996, NIAF has worked with the National Christopher Columbus Association (NCCA) to sponsor an annual national essay contest on a topic related to Christopher Columbus for high school students throughout the United Stat...

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The replacement for the Columbus statue in Wooster Square Park has hit a roadblock, with objections to its size and design as well as questions on compliance with historic district standards. A vote on the proposed four-figure family statue meant to honor Italian-American immigrants to Wooster Square has been put off until Jan. 12 as the project se...

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A man convicted of knocking over the Christopher Columbus bust at the Lancaster County Courthouse and shattering a glass door pane at the courthouse's Duke Street entrance in June will spend up to nine years in prison, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. Francisco Rodriguez Jr., 34, who police said was homeless when they i...

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Although the holiday honoring Christopher Columbus has passed this year, the passions of many of the legal combatants over the statue are still running hot, and several legal challenges are still unwinding in court which could determine the fate of the statue in South Philadelphia’s  Marconi Plaza. George Bochetto is the primary attorney at the for...

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The contentious debate between keeping controversial statues or removing them has reached a boiling point. In Syracuse, our discussion centers around a landmark of downtown, the Columbus Monument. A towering, 11-foot bronze statue of Christopher Columbus stands on top of a large pedestal. On both sides of the debate there are passionate opinions on...

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The Cristoforo Columbo Fellowship is gifted to graduate students, faculty, and/or independent scholars pursuing research on Italian people and their communities of Butte, Montana. Fellowship awards of $500 -$3,000 s. Award funds are to be used for research support, including travel and lodging expenses, but not as salary. Awards are to be used for...

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The group suing the City of Pittsburgh and Mayor Bill Peduto to keep the statue of Christopher Columbus in place now alleges that the art commission’s vote to remove it is invalid because the mayor attempted to influence that vote. But the allegation seems to rest on a mischaracterized email from an art commissioner. Attorneys for the Italian Sons...

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