Among the several historic monuments that were defaced, vandalized, or otherwise damaged during peaceful protests that turned violent in Washington, D.C., this week was the Victims of Communism Memorial on the northeast side of the District.
Located mere steps away from Capitol Hill, at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue NW, New Jersey Avenue NW, and G Street NW, the “Goddess of Democracy” stands as a symbol of freedom and rejection of oppressive communist regimes. It is modeled after the monument of the same name in Tiananmen Square, China.
Photos taken this week show spray paint strewn across the statue, with the letters C-H-A-N written across its base. The Goddess herself had the letters “B-L-M” written down her leg, an apparent reference to Black Lives Matter. Officials believe the vandalism occurred Monday evening.
“You do not advance justice by defacing our country’s memorial dedicated to one of the largest victim groups in human history — those killed by communist parties in power,” said Marion Smith, executive director at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.
The memorial’s front pedestal, dedicated in 2007, reads: “To the more than one hundred million victims of communism and to those who love liberty.” Its back pedestal reads, “To the freedom and independence of all captive nations and peoples.”
Experts say communism in various forms around the world has killed more than 100 million people, by means of murder, torture, and forced poverty, resulting from sweeping government control.
“The injustices of communism were not limited to mass murder alone,” Ilya Somin wrote in a 2017 analysis for the Washington Post. “Even those fortunate enough to survive still were subjected to severe repression, including violations of freedom, of speech, freedom of religion, loss of property rights, and the criminalization of ordinary economic activity. No previous tyranny sought such complete control over nearly every aspect of people’s lives.”
Smith said activists on the political left, who are believed to have specifically targeted the victims of communism display, are showing an ignorance of world history.
“For those who pretend socialism and fascism are all somehow on opposite ends of the political spectrum, fascism and socialism are twin ideologues, and that was very vividly on display with the Nazi-Soviet compact that started WWII,” Smith told the Washington Examiner. “That’s really a shame. Millennials and members of the Gen Z generation do not have a good understanding of the history of fascism or communism, and that leads them to be much more extremist in their perspective.”
Since it’s erection, people from hundreds of countries across the world have come to Washington, D.C., to visit the monument, laying wreaths, singing songs, and praying for countrymen who have died under oppressive communist regimes.
The statue was vandalized on at least one occasion before Monday, including during an eruption of protests following the inauguration of President Trump.
Trump has blamed antifa, a loosely organized, far-left group that claims to share anti-fascist beliefs, for the damage caused in D.C. and other major cities in recent days. Attorney General William Barr announced over the weekend the federal government would designate antifa a terrorist organization and seek to prosecute members who have participated in “acts of domestic terrorism.”
The destruction of public property in the nation’s capital comes amid otherwise peaceful demonstrations protesting the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died in police custody after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.
Other historic monuments and sites were defaced during protests in Washington, including the Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, and St. John’s Episcopal Church across the street from the White House.
In the wake of last night’s demonstrations, there are numerous instances of vandalism to sites around the National Mall. For generations the Mall has been our nation’s premier civic gathering space for non-violent demonstrations, and we ask individuals to carry on that tradition. pic.twitter.com/LmIHfW2AHj
— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) May 31, 2020
“I think it’s hurtful on a number of levels. Look, the VA was defaced — literally, the word ‘veteran’ spray-painted out of the placard in front of the Department of Veteran Affairs. The Lincoln Memorial defaced. How does that make much sense? The place where the March on Washington began, that momentous occasion in the history of civil rights, that memorial was defaced last night. That doesn’t honor the legacy of George Floyd, it doesn’t, and certainly not the burning of St. John’s Church,” said White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. “[St. John’s] supported the bold civil rights moment of the March on Washington, which began at the Lincoln Memorial. That doesn’t honor the legacy of George Floyd. It doesn’t further the cause. And those are violent anarchists, antifa, who are taking advantage of the pain of people, the pain of the peaceful protesters.”
President Trump has demanded local police departments do more to protect public property and private businesses from violent looters or other criminals his administration says have infiltrated peaceful protest with the sole intention of causing damage.
“Dangerous MOBS of far-left groups are running through our streets and causing absolute mayhem,” read a fundraising email the Trump campaign sent out Tuesday, Politico reported. “They are DESTROYING our cities and rioting — it’s absolute madness.”
Smith suggested violent activists often target memorials for a specific and symbolic reason.
“Memorials and monuments are acts of civic reconciliation, public memory, and representation of key decisions to overcome the worst aspects of our history,” he said. “In a very crystallized way, they represent our history. Those are targets for these extremist groups that want to break our country.”
