September 12 - 18, 2022 Vol. 31 No. 37 $1.85 + Tips go to $3Vendoryour
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The price increase, by expanding one of the most reliable income sources we have, will give StreetWise vendors an income they need to thrive, and not just survive. Deserve a Raise!
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Beginning June 27, StreetWise costs $3.00 + tips. Vendors will now earn $1.85 per issue instead of $1.10 for every magazine sold.
Why now?
We Are Giving Our Vendors a Raise!
StreetWise has not increased the price of our magazine to the vendors or customers since 2008! It was only the second increase in the 30-year history of StreetWise.
The new price of $3, with vendors paying $1.15 for their papers, means each paper sold nets the vendor a solid $1.85. It raises the floor so that our vendors earn a wage that is worth their while. It’s time for this to happen. We talked with our vendors and received feedback from some of our customers and supporters. We have nearly unanimous support for the price increase. Now is the time.
Cover Story: Chicago Monuments Collective soul-searching about Chicago's 500 monuments in the wake of George Floyd's death led to formation of the Chicago Monuments Project (CMP), a group of community leaders, artists, architects, scholars, curators and city officials who performed what officials say is the nation's first community-focused engagement process -- which they compare to the national debate over Confederate monuments. "The art we place o public property must represent history without injury, insult or denigration," officials said in releasing the final report.
DISCLAIMER: The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opin ions, or positions of StreetWise.
and we want you
Amanda Jones, Director of programs ajones@streetwise.org Julie Youngquist, Executive director jyoungquist@streetwise.org Ph: 773-334-6600 Office: 2009 S. State St., Chicago, IL, 60616
Arts & Entertainment
More and more events are happening in Chicago, to about the best of the best!
Dave Hamilton, Creative Director/Publisher dhamilton@streetwise.org Suzanne Hanney, Editor-In-Chief suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
know
SportsWise
The SportsWise team makes predictions for what we hope will be an exciting NFL season.
DONATE To make a donation to StreetWise, visit our website at www.streetwise.org/donate/ or cut out this form and mail it with your donation to StreetWise, Inc., 2009 S. State St., Chicago, IL 60616. We appreciate your support! My donation is for the amount of $________________________________Billing Information: Check #_________________Credit Card Type:______________________Name:_______ We accept: Visa, Mastercard, Discover or American Express ExpirationAccount#:_____________________________________________________City:___________________________________State:_________________ZiAddress:_____p:_______________________Date:________________________________________________Phone#:_________________________________Email: StreetWiseChicago @StreetWise_CHI LEARN MORE AT streetwise.org
The Playground ON THE COVER: The John A. Logan monument, 1897, in Grant Park needs additional narra tive. according to the CMP report. (Jen Craling photo). THIS PAGE: The Republic by Daniel Chester French, 1918 (replica of 1893 original), for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Jackson Park by Hayes Drive, illustrates a sentiment of the period that glorified Western technology and white colonialism. (photo: ©Jyoti Srivastava).
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(HOME) ENTERTAINMENT
Resilience Through Art!
Prince Nikolaos’ Photography Exhibit at the National Hellenic Museum
Film fans rejoice, and come on over to Facets, 1517 W. Fullerton Ave., to the Aladerri International Film Festival (AIFF). AIFF is an IMDb Award listing qualifier, whose focus is on celebrating "short films" over the course of several days. The festival gives various talented filmmakers a chance to showcase their inspiring and impactful work. AIFF will feature both national and international films by a mixture of both established and emerging artists who show a passion for the art. Along with sharing great stories from inde pendent filmmakers, those attending AIFF will be given a chance to participate in a Q&A with on-site filmmakers. The festival runs from September 16-18. You can find more information, including official selections, schedule, and ticket prices, www.aladerrifilmfestival.com.at
Aladerri International Film Festival
On Monday, September 12 from 6 - 9 p.m., head for the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph St., for DESIGNIGHT: Celebrating Chicago’s Architectural Excellence. Hosted by the American Institute of Architects, this will be the premiere for this architectural celebration. The festival will celebrate the global design achievements of AIA Chicago mem bers and the projects they’ve worked on, large and small. Design Excellence Awards will be awarded to the AIA Chicago members during this evening hosted by Peter Sagal. Come join in on this informational, comedic, free event, and learn all about the newest architecture both in this community and around the world.
Jazz For All!
Englewood Jazz Festival
The Englewood Jazz Festival is deeply rooted in the community, and performances there reflect the rich cultural heritage of Englewood. The festival’s goal is to support and increase the musical resources of the community while connecting the past and present through music, mentoring, and an exchange of intergenerational knowledge. Rain or shine, this show-stopping event will be September 14-17 at Hamilton Park, 513 W. 72nd St., beginning Wednes day at 4:30-6:30 p.m., Thursday and Friday at 6 p.m., and Saturday from 11 a.m.-4:15 p.m. Bring a blanket or chair to this free event, and listen in on talented performers such as Ernest Dawkins (pictured) on "Tim Black Blacker than Black," Makaya McCraven, Endea Owens, and more! Visit englewoodjazzfest.org for more information on all of the performers and events. & ENTERTAINMENT RECOMMENDATIONS
4 ARTS
Compiled by Sarah Linde, Dave Hamilton, & Suzanne Hanney
Appreciate the architecture of this sweeping city? Why not attend a celebration of just that.
Architecture Celebration!
DESIGNIGHT
The world premiere of Prince Nikolaos’ major photography exhibition, “Resilience,” opens September 16 at the National Hellenic Museum, 333 S. Halsted St. “Greece’s past, present and future is intertwined and inextricably linked with nature. The recent pandemic has changed how we view the physical world and our space within it, and has forced us to go back to our origins to find inspiration,” says curator Marilena Koutsoukou. The central piece of the show, a mosaic of photos and upcycled ocean plastic debris titled “Sea Cred,” raises awareness of oceanic pol lution. The exhibition will also feature “Together,” (pictured) life-size illuminated, embracing olive trees. Friday-Sunday from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. through December 30, $10.
Film Festival!
On Monday, September 12 at 6:30 pm, The Book Stall (811 Elm St., Winnetka) will host prizewinning journalist and acclaimed author David Maraniss as he discusses his newest biogra phy. “Path Lit by Lightning” follows the life of Native American sports star Jim Thorpe (pic tured). Maraniss will also discuss the book with bookseller and historian Jon Grand. Tickets start at $32.69 and include a copy of the book, available at www.thebookstall.com.
Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival
‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ Resident Artist Ron OJ Parson directs this American classic as Court Theatre's season opener September 2-October 2, bringing some much-needed dark humor and healing laughter to the stage. Mild-mannered sisters Martha and Abby live in their spacious Victorian home in a quiet neighborhood in Brooklyn with their eccentric nephew. Famed for their hospitality, they are adored by their neighbors. But when their other nephew discovers his aunts' macabre secrets, a hilari ous chain of events ensues in this character-driven farce. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Wed-Sun, 2 p.m. Sun and 2 p.m. Sat, Sept 17, 24 and Oct 1 at 5535 S. Ellis Ave. in Hyde Park. Masks are optional, but strongly encouraged. More information and tickets at CourtTheatre.org.
From Musical to Opera!
The Life of a Legend!
Pulitzer Prize Winning!
Latinx Voices!
Presented by the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance, the citywide fifth annual Destinos: Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, is unlike any other in the Midwest! Destinos puts various Latinx voices front and center on Chica go stages downtown and in various neighborhoods around the city in exuberant theatrical performances. From drama to comedy, there will certainly be something that will catch your attention. The festival will run through October 16, and the list of performances can be found at clata.org. www.streetwise.org
Healing Laughter!
Coming of Age!
‘Girlfriend’ The Chicago premiere of the musical “Girlfriend,” by Todd Almond and Matthew Sweet, plays at 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, and 3 p.m. Sundays through September 25 at Pride Arts Center, 4139 N. Broaday. Based on Sweet’s album of the same name, the play is set in Nebraska in the ’90s. Will, a bit of a social outcast, and Mike, the popular football player, figure out that there is more to life than what high school has taught them. Days after graduation, they explore their relationship and begin to ask themselves where their lives begin. Tickets are $35 at pridearts.org.
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‘Stew’ Shattered Globe Theatre presents the Chicago premiere of “Stew.” The Tucker women are up early to prepare an important meal, or at least that’s what Mama says. As the day wears on, tensions simmer inside and around Mama’s kitchen. Zora Howard’s award-winning play is a hilarious and haunting drama that explores the unbreakable bond between kinswomen and reveals the power that loss holds over our lives when we refuse to share it with others. Performances are at 8 p.m. ThursdaySaturday, and 3 p.m. Sundays through October 22 at Theatre Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. Tickets start at $15 at sgtheatre.org/stew.
Author Talk: David Maraniss
'Fiddler on the Roof' World famous opera director Barrie Kosky’s production of the classic “Fiddler on the Roof” will be taking stage at the Lyric Opera House starting September 17. The play is described as a “completely original and unique experience created from the revered, Tony Award-winning masterpiece.” This take on "Fiddler" is one that you are sure to never forget, whether it’s the first time you’re enjoying the musical, or not. Experience the story of Tevye, his wife Golde, and their five daughters, accompanied by the full power of the Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chorus. $40+ at www.lyricopera.org until October 7.
Russ: I have Kansas City tak ing it all the way against who ever. Patrick Mahomes is The JohnMan.: Well, I believe for only the 2nd time in Super Bowl history, there’s going to be a rematch of the previous Super Bowl: the L.A. Rams vs. the Cincinnati Bengals. The two quarterbacks here—Matthew Stafford and Joe Burrow—are good enough to get it done.
True. All right, so let me give y’all a quick rundown of what I feel for this upcom ing season. In the NFC, I have Green Bay from the North, Dallas Cowboys out the East, L.A. Rams from out west, and Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buc caneers from down south.
Russ: The Bears have to em brace that thought.
Russ: I do have the Bears not doing that poorly this year. Actually, I have them in 2nd, behind the Green Bay Packers, ahead of Minnesota, with De troit bringing up the rear. John: I hear you all…but I’m definitely not agreeing with what I’m hearing. Listen, de spite a 3-0 preseason record, the Bears will be the ones bringing up the rear. And I don’t see the Packers even making the play Russoffs.: Oh, wow. Patrick: Agreed. It’s hard to imagine that, of these four teams, the Packers wouldn’t make the playoffs. Always pos sible, but hasn’t felt likely in friggin’ eons.
Vendors Russell Adams, John Hagan and Donald Morris chat about the world of sports with Executive Assistant Patrick Edwards.
John: Well, I feel the loss of Davante Adams will be too much to overcome for them. Now, not necessarily saying they’ll fall to third, but I feel the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions have improved big-time from last season. Both have better depth than the Packers and definitely more than the Bears.
Donald: So, yeah, I truly be lieve the Bears could win that NFC Championship trophy; the right growth, the right matchups, a call here or there, and we might be rolling down Michigan Avenue come Feb Russruary.:
Rashanah Baldwin
gets stronger and more com fortable with it, he could mess around and be a new-age War ren Moon or something.
Patrick: Fellas, I have to roll with my guy, Mr. Tom Brady. So, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it is for me. Any comments or suggestions? Email pedwards@streetwise.org
Donald: I like Justin Fields. I believe he can be the quarter back Chicago’s been looking for. I mean, he may always keep that college-quarterback air about him, but I feel he’ll excel as his confidence grows.
Donald: So, who do you have at the end?
Patrick: Yes, let him be the col lege-style quarterback that he is. Shoot, down the line, as he
Patrick: Can’t wait to hear your AFC picks. Russ: All right, so, from the AFC North, I have Cincinnati; out of the East, I have the Buf falo Bills; from the AFC West, I have the Kansas City Chiefs rolling there and, then, from the South, I’m going with the Tennessee Titans.
SPORTS WISE
Donald: Actually, I have the Bears making it to the Super Bowl…but losing to the Cin cinnati Bengals. I know I’m going to get it with both of those picks, but especially with our PatrickBears.:And, now, although I was kidding…somewhat… with my opening Bears’ cham pionship proclamation, I do believe in them. I have a hard time allowing my brain to function when calling it, but doing this job, I know I have to get analytical with it and treat this as if I don’t have a favorite; I am able to look beyond my team and see without bias.
Patrick: Bears all the way. 2022-23 NFL champions! Kidding, kind of!
“The art we place on public property must represent history without injury, insult or denigration,” CMP Co-chairs Mark Kelly and Bonnie McDonald said in the final report.
Collective soul-searching about Chicago’s 500 monuments began in the wake of George Floyd’s death in May 2020.
“…in the same way that Confederate monuments and flags have come to be identified as unacceptable public symbols of white supremacy, the time has come for an examination and reassessment of the collection of Chicago monuments that misrepresent, oversimplify, or erase history,” according to the report.
The CMP report does not detail Lincoln’s white elitist actions, but according to history.com, Lincoln volunteered (and did not see combat) in the Black Hawk War, which pushed lo cal tribes across the Mississippi River. As president, he was consumed by formulating strategy to win the Civil War, so he deferred to the reactionary Indian policies of his predeces sors, which meant broken treaties and millions of acres of tribal lands confiscated in the name of westward expansion.
Goodbye, Columbus and 19th century white elitists; hello to a range of tributes to minorities, women and local history events, according to the final report of the Chicago Monu ments Project (CMP), released August 19.
CMP participant John Low, Ph.D., an enrolled citizen of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and associate professor at Ohio State University, wrote that between the 1890s and 1930s, whites believed that Indians had been subjugated and were no longer a threat. As a result, whites created artwork that mythologically memorialized Indians. Native Americans were not seen as participants in modern life. But monuments give shared communities a sense of origins and set the standard for civic values worth emulating, wrote Adam Green, Ph.D., an associate professor of American history at the University of Chicago and a CMP participant. “What values of ours are likely to be judged as narrow, naïve, or brutally misguided, and which ones might actually prove by Suzanne Hanney
The censured monuments had one or more things in com mon: they promoted a white supremacy narrative or de meaning characterizations of American Indians; they me morialized individuals connected to racist acts, slavery or genocide; they presented oversimplified views of history; they created tension between those who valued these art works and those who did not.
While the CMP report acknowledged that the Columbus statues in Grant Park and Arrigo Park are viewed with pride by Italian Americans, the explorer’s image has also “become a bitter reminder of centuries of exploitation, conquest and genocide.” Continued city display would seem to condone the historic wrongs committed by Columbus, according to the report. But most of all, given the significant public demonstrations against the statues, “Providing for the long-term security of the artworks and ensuring public safety is resource-prohib Alsoitive.”going into storage is the bust of Melville Fuller, a Chi cago lawyer who became chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court that handed down the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson deci sion, which enshrined “separate but equal” segregation in the U.S. for over half a century. The CMP report suggested that the Chicago Park District also remove Fuller’s name from the park located at 331 W. 45th St., which is surround ed by the like-named neighborhood. Although Illinois is the “Land of Lincoln,” as the CMP report noted, Chicago’s depictions of the 16th president, includ ing “Standing Lincoln” (in Lincoln Park), “Seated Lincoln” (in Grant Park), “Lincoln Rail Splitter” (Garfield Park) and “Young Lincoln” (Senn Park) were a cause for concern. The statues will remain, but their descriptive text will be modified and community members, including American Indians, will stage artistic interventions.
Forty-one monuments necessitated discussion, based on stereotypical depictions of American Indians or racist acts committed by those portrayed, according to the report.
8 COVER STORY
Chicago's Monuments: A Monumental Debate
Mayor Lori Lightfoot initiated the CMP partnership, with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), Chicago Park District and Chicago Public Schools, in fall 2020. Outreach ran throughout 2021; analysis and recommendations continued over spring and summer of 2022. CMP officials call it the nation’s first, comprehensive, community-focused engagement process, and compare it to the national debate over Confederate monuments. Lead ing the effort was the CMP Advisory Committee, a group of community leaders, artists, architects, scholars, curators and city officials.
Most of the controversial artwork was created between the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 — the Chicago World’s Fair that celebrated technological advances created by Americans and Western Europeans up to that point – and the late 1930s.
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As part of the engagement process, CMP released a call, “Reimagining Monuments: Request for Ideas,” to solicit pro posals from individual artists and community groups to re think the place, purpose and permanence of monuments in public Besidesspaces.reexamining Chicago history, key action items fo cused on creating greater visibility for American Indians; con sidering underrecognized stories and unsung people (only 3% of the city’s monuments depict women); prioritizing pro grams that engaged youth.
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Out of a collection of more than 500 monumental sculptures and commemorative plaques and artworks on the public way and in Chicago parks, these were identified for a public discussion by the Chicago Monuments Project. Additional discussed monuments are featured on the following pages. All photos for this story © Jyoti Srivastava, unless noted. Captions are listed by column, top to bottom. The Alarm, 1884 Robert Cavelier de La Salle, 1889 Fort Dearborn Massacre, 1893 (P. Sloan photo) Bull and Indian Maiden, 1908, replica of 1893 of Peace, 1890, installed 1894 • The Republic, 1918, replica of 1893 original • Tablet dedicated to Jolliet and Marquette, 1925 (Roger Deschner photo) Tablet dedicated to Cavelier de La Salle, 1925 • Damen Avenue Bridge Marquette Monument, 1930 (Roger Deschner photo) • Christopher Columbus Monument, 1892 Drake Fountain, 1893 • Columbus Monument, 1933 • Standing Lincoln, 1887 • General John Logan Monument, 1897 • Seated Lincoln, 1908, installed •1926Lincoln, 1956 • Lincoln Rail Splitter, 1905, installed 1909 • Young Lincoln, 1951, installed 1997 Ulysses S. Grant Monument, •1891Benjamin Franklin, 1895, installed 1896, relocated from site near zoo in 1966 George Washington, 1900, replica of original in Paris, installed 1904 Robert Monument,Washington-HaymMorris-GeorgeSalomon1936–1941
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• Haymarket Riot Monument/ Police Memorial, 1889 • Leif Ericson, 1901 • Bust of Melville Fuller, 1912 (Patrick Pyszka/Samuel Avila •photo)Marquette Campsite Plaque, 1980 • Jean Baptiste Beaubien Plaque, 1937 • Chicago River Plaque, 1953 • Wilderness, Winter Scene, •1934William McKinley Monument, 1904
www.streetwise.org 9 serviceable to the future? This, to be sure, is an impossible question….Yet we have no choice but to try, for we will be judged by those to come, just as we continue to wrestle to day with how best to assess those who came before us.” Rather than monument removal, most of the CMP solutions involve augmenting, with new public projects and curricula.
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• A community-led monument to victims of gun violence in Chicago
• Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, Chicago’s first settler, and his wife, Kitihawa, a Potawa tomi woman
For a start, DCASE has awarded eight $50,000 planning and implementation grants toward the fol lowing subjects:
Installed at Clark Street and Rogers Avenue, the northern boundary of a 20mile by 70-mile tract of land negotiated at the 1816 Treaty of St. Louis. The land extended from Lake Michigan to the Illinois River near Ottawa and was envisioned for construction of a canal between the Great Lakes and the Mis sissippi River that set up Chicago as a trading center. Recommendation: edit the text to tell a more holistic story.
• Chicanas of 18th Street, about the work of women of Mexican ancestry in Pilsen from the mid-60s to 1980
• Mahalia Jackson, gospel singer and civil rights advocate, to the Greater Chatham Initia tive, in the neighborhood where Jackson lived
• Chicago Torture Justice Memorial, con ceived by artist Patricia Nguyen and architec tural designer John Lee, regarding the victims of Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge • Chicago Race Riot of 1919, with artistic markers to commemorate each of the 38 people killed
Between January and August 2021, the public re sponse, some with personal narratives, numbered 2,000; 3 out of 4 (77%) were from Cook County, but there were also submissions from 30 states, and from Spain, Serbia, Luxembourg, Australia and Mexico. Three of the top four responding ZIP codes were more than 72% white. There were only 15 re plies from Chicago ZIP codes that were more than 30% Black, and 23 replies from those with the high est population (67% or more) of Latinos.
• A Long Walk Home, for its “Visibility Project” proposal centered on Black women and girls
10 Indian Boundary Lines Plaque
Recommendation: consider long-term loan or donation to a private organization.
includedMonumentsMorein the discussion
Ald. Maria Hadden (49th) and the Rogers Park/West Ridge Historical Society also hosted a session on the Indian Boundary Lines marker.
CMP and the Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative (CAICC) developed a survey that elic ited 49 responses from Dec. 21, 2021 to January 14. The Christopher Columbus statue in Grant Park was offensive to 87% of them and 75% wanted it taken down. More than half (56%) found “The Defense” bas relief on the DuSable Michigan Avenue Bridge to be demeaning. Said one person regarding this Fort Dearborn battle scene: “There is literally a dead Native person depicted on this relief. I can’t imagine that we as a society would be OK with something like this if it were any other racial/ethnic group.”
Italo Balbo Monument east of Soldier Field Italo Balbo flew to Chicago’s Century of Progress world’s fair in 1933 as part of a 24-aviator formation. The monument to this feat, on the site of the Italian Pavilion at the fair, was a gift of the fascist government of Italy. According to historian John Mark Hansen, Balbo planned the insurrectional March on Rome that installed Benito Mussolini as dictator; as colonial governor of Libya, Balbo supported Italy’s forced annexation of Ethiopia. Recommendation: place the ancient column in storage or consider long-term loan to a private organization.
General Philip Henry Sheridan at Sheridan Road and Belmont Avenue Sheridan employed the same scorched-earth tactics as head of the Depart ment of the Missouri in 1867 as he did as a Civil War general. He allowed bi son poaching on tribal lands that nearly exterminated the species. The statue has also been repeatedly vandalized.
The CMP’s public engagement during 2021 involved virtual conversations with 300 members of diverse community stakeholders: African Americans, Ameri can Indians, Italian Americans, Latinx, people who are disabled, historic preservationists and youth. There were also seven virtual, drop-in sessions in February and March 2021, with 80 participants.
• Mother Jones, Irish immigrant and labor champion
There is a profound story embedded in monuments and memorials created by non-Natives for non-Na tives; they reflect a pathos, guilt and nostalgia for the disappearing – and now “safe” – Indian. Such memorials represent a victory celebration over “the first peoples.” They began to appear with gathering frequency after 1890, the time of the assumed subjugation of the remaining Indian peoples within the boundaries of the Nation. When they no longer perceived Ameri can Indians as a threat, white Americans were free to embrace Indians as part of our collective national heritage and to memorialize and mythologize the story of their defeat….part of our historical past, rather than as participants in modern life. This view represented an affirmation of the “vanishing Indian” trope and an expectation of Indian assimilation.
John N. Low, Ph.D., is a Chicago Monuments Project Advisory Committee member, associate professor at Ohio State University, director of New ark Earthworks Center and a citizen of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi.
Another huge effect of the committee’s actions is the precedence. What will happen to monuments of other icons or particular ethnic groups?
Decades of settlers cemented their memories of American Indians into statues that reflect a celebra tion of conquest and nostalgia for a mythical past.
The Arrigo Park Columbus statue was made in Italy by sculptor Moses Ezekiel for the 1893 Columbian Exposition Chicago World’s Fair. The Grant Park Columbus statue was built for the 1933 Century of Progress Chicago World’s Fair. Chicago’s Italian American community donated a considerable amount to see the monuments realized.
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Native American viewpoint: John Low Monuments are not innocent. We have to understand the role of monuments and other com memorative sites and activities in developing a shared narrative of the past, present and future. They can contribute to a collec tive memory that all too quickly becomes accepted as truth. The Chicago Monuments Project presents the opportunity to reconsider our monuments and memorials and assess whether they fairly represent the histories and peoples of Chicago.
As a leader in the Italian American community, I rep resent thousands of individuals who feel the same. I vehemently oppose the removal of any of the Christo pher Columbus statues, as well as the monument to the milestone in aviation by Italo Balbo.
Columbus Counterpoint: Sergio Giangrande I believe that we cannot rewrite history. Removing monuments leads to a lack of acknowledgement and forgetting history.Where are the monuments to American Indians, African Ameri cans, American women and many more heroes? These monuments should be added. Monuments should not be removed.
As you look around this city and others, we can find controversial persons and subjects and disagreements. But think of the dialogue that has ensued…the increased awareness and respect to all the groups as a Growingresult.
American Indians were rarely consulted on what memorials they might appreciate. After all, these monuments were really not for the Natives, but for the grandchildren of the immigrant-settlers, a kind of apologia in stone. Monuments that purported to honor the local Indians often reflected a darker mes sage and imagination, celebrating the white settlers’ achievements in defeating American Indians rather than the achievements or worth of the Indians them occurrence when both Natives and nonNatives can share a commemorative space that ac knowledges the difficulties and complexities of early contact between the two. That is indeed the oppor tunity before us in Chicago today.
Many Italian Americans proudly celebrate Columbus’ positive effects, such as the expansion of the world as we know it. I am strongly in favor of monuments to individuals, even though they may have imperfections.
Itselves.isarare
The Italo Balbo monument was a special gift from Italy to commemorate Italo Balbo’s transatlantic flight from Rome [to the 1933 World’s Fair]… a column from Ostia, a city of ancient Rome. This column is over 2,000 years old. Even the mere suggestion of risking damage to it by taking it down is ridiculous.
Sergio Giangrande is a Chicago Monuments Project Advisory Committee member and former president of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans. Both columns on this page have been edited for space. Read the full report https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/dca/cmp/cmpreport.pdfat
up as an Italian American, the traditions that surround the Columbus and Balbo monuments were very important. These are traditions I want my children to understand and to hopefully one day pass on to my grandchildren, along with other Italian American fami lies. We have a chance to truly make history here. Let us make it. Not erase it.
There’s also another Indian lying between Captain Wells' feet, either wounded or dead, and a lady with child, seemingly trying to flee, while someone with a knife is either trying to hinder or help. Nevertheless, this is a brutal scene. The only thing calm about this bas relief is the lady across the top. She is watching like an angel, who sits high and looks low. She seems to be an innocent bystander who is the only one who can tell the whole story of what really happened, sort of like a fly on the wall, or like Santa Claus, who knows who’s been good and who’s been bad.
In my opinion, only the angel knows what happened. From the gist of the picture, it looks very violent and demeaning to the Indian nation. It seems to advocate for the white man as the hero, or dominant, which was not the case, because he was killed. It should be removed because of controversy in the sculpture and the real story. It’s not necessary to display such violence. The Defense (among four bas-reliefs on DuSable Michigan Avenue Bridge) American Indians are used as merely a foil to help define the heroism of colonizing forces. Recommendation: Because the sculptures are attached to the bridgehouses at each corner, detachment without damage to those buildings would be difficult. Powerful, non-physical, and possibly episodic, deactivation or disruption is recommended.
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AvenueMichiganon-reliefsTheDiscoverersTheRegenerationPioneersotherbasfeaturedtheDuSablebridge:
There’s a lot of violence going on in “Defense,” the depiction of the bloody battle of Fort Dearborn during the War of 1812 on the DuSable Michigan Avenue Bridge. Basically, the Americans had obtained the strategically important land at the junction of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan from the Potawa tomi Indians and built the fort there — at about the site of this monument. But after the Revolutionary War, as whites moved into the area, the Indians saw their ancestral lands slipping way, and so they sided with the British for “Round 2,” the War of 1812. When the British and Native troops captured Fort Mackinac, the American territorial commander ordered the evacuation of Fort Dearborn. The fort’s inhabitants were about two miles on their journey to Fort Wayne in this scene.
Vendor A. Allen on 'the Defense' bas-relief
Captain William Wells, in the foreground, was escorting them. Wells was an Indian scout, having been taken captive by Miami Indians when he was 12 and raised in their tribe. He later entered the U.S. Army and became an Indian agent to the friendly Miami tribes in this area. According to the Smithsonian Institution’s waymarking website, Wells was actually dressed as an Indian, with face painted black in anticipation of death, but in this bas relief, he is dressed as an Army officer, with the long sword aiming to brutally kill the Indian in front of him, who is obviously trying to defend himself with a knife. The Indian behind that Indian seems to be gesturing, “Don’t worry, I got your back. After he kills you, I will kill him,” which is essentially what happened.
Indians (The Bowman and the Spearman) flanking Ida B. Wells Plaza at Michigan Avenue
Jacques Marquette/Louis Jolliet Memorial
Kinzie Mansion Plaque
This 1926 sculpture at 24th and Marshall boulevards, one block west of California, was intended to mark the spot where the missionary and the fur trader realized that a canal at what is now Chicago could link the Great Lakes system with the Mississippi River. However, the Algon quin guide appears to be cowering, reinforcing stereotypes about American Indians and glorify ing Western expansion. Recommendation: The artwork should be placed in storage, or loaned, long-term, to a private organization.
In recent years, we've changed the names of sports teams. We got rid of the emblem for the Cleve land Indians because it was allegedly racist. We even changed the name of the team from the Cleveland Indians to the Cleveland Guardians. The Washington Redskins are now the Washington Commanders. The Illinois Fighting Illini no longer have their mascot, Chief Illiniwek, for the same reason that the Cleveland Indians got rid of their emblem.
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Created for Chicago’s centennial as a city, the plaque minimizes the prominence of Jean Bap tiste Pointe du Sable as first settler, denies the existence of Native peoples, and glorifies “the city’s first white child.” Recommendation: place it in storage, commission new signage with a more accurate, inclusive story of the city’s founding.
The Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in the U.S.A. hosted a discussion by Croatian art historians regarding the 1928 works by Croatian artist Ivan Meštrovic and noted that they are a source of community pride. Other scholarly panelists said the sculptures were inaccurate (local Indians were not horse people), stereotypi cal and sexualized imagery, a romanticized and anachronistic identity harmful to the American Indian community. Recommendation: permanent and/or ongoing artistic prioritized interventions that will help viewers reconsider the works and their subjects.
I don't see anything wrong with the Illinois Cen tennial Monument. Since my stepfather, Kenny Mason, is a Cherokee, I wanted to get his take on this. He didn't see anything wrong with the Illinois Centennial Monument. I also asked my mother, Wanda Mason (not a native Ameri can), how she felt about it, and she didn't see anything wrong with it either.
Illinois Centennial Monument in Logan Square
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I can see where a team name like Redskins could be construed as racist, but I'm not seeing how the other things I just mentioned are racist or offensive in any other ways. In conclusion, I would like to say that what we really should do is ask the native Americans if these things are offensive to them. If they are offensive to the native Americans, then yes, we should get rid of those things, but if they're not offensive, we don't have to get rid of them. I'll say the same thing for things that might be construed as offensive to other groups, as well.
Completed for the 100th anniversary of the state in 1918, the 50-foot Doric column features base with a procession of allegorical personifications of labor, in dustry and agriculture, American Indians and explorers. Recommendation: engage American Indian community and revise the monument’s accompanying text
Vendor William Plowman on the 'Illinois centennial monument'
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