Saint Louis University removed a statue that has stood in the center of campus for decades, after receiving complaints that it is a symbol of white supremacy.
The statue depicts the Reverend Pierre-Jean De Smet, a Jesuit missionary priest, praying over two Native Americans. The statue has been criticized for suggesting that Native Americans welcomed or submitted to European efforts to take their land and convert them to Christianity.
An SLU spokesman told St. Louis Magazine that the statue was moved to the university’s art museum after staff voiced concerns.
“In more recent years, there have been some faculty and staff who have raised questions about whether the sculpture is culturally sensitive,” Berry said. “Hearing that feedback, the decision was made to place the piece within the historical context of a collection that’s on permanent display in our SLU Museum of Art.”
The College Fix has documented numerous requests by students to take down the statue, including a recent op-ed published in SLU’s University News, in which student Ryan McKinley said the statue sends a clear, unwelcoming message to American Indians at the university.
“The statue of De Smet depicts a history of colonialism, imperialism, racism and of Christian and white supremacy,” McKinley wrote.
The private Catholic university has been embroiled in controversy in the aftermath of the Ferguson protests. Anti-police demonstrators had an “Occupy SLU” sit-in on campus last October that lasted for six days and ended with the SLU President Fred Pestello agreeing to a list of demands addressing racial inequality in the community.
