In Chicago, another statue honouring the late US president Abraham Lincoln was found vandalised. On Thanksgiving Day, the phrases “COLONIZER” and “LAND BACK” were discovered painted in red splotches on a statue of a young Abraham Lincoln in Senn Park in Chicago’s Edgewater neighbourhood. As per the Chicago Tribune, the statue also had “Dakota 38” written on it, referring to the Dakota Sioux members who were sentenced to death by Lincoln after the Dakota War of 1862.
This is for the second time a statue dedicated to Abraham Lincoln has been vandalised in the US within two months. On October 11, a similar incident was reported involving a different statue of the 16th president in Lincoln Park, some six miles from Senn Park.
Lincoln has recently faced criticism for his role in the Sioux revolt, even though he is best remembered for helping to abolish legal slavery in the United States.
During the height of the civil war, various eastern Dakota and American gangs engaged in a six-week battle in the southern region of Minnesota, triggered after four young Dakota men attacked and killed five settlers.
358 settlers, 77 American soldiers, and 29 volunteer militia men perished in the conflict. Although Lincoln commuted the sentences of 303 of the 498 captured Dakota men, 38 of them were executed.
The vandalised statue has been residing in the outdoor park since 1997. Augustus Saint-Gaudens created the “Abraham Lincoln: The Man” statue in Lincoln Park in 1887, 22 years after Lincoln’s demise. It is regarded as one of the most important portraits of the president from the 19th century. The police is yet to make any arrests in this case.
(With inputs from agencies)
