Roosevelt Statue Removed from Natural-History Museum for Glorifying Colonialism
I have played Devil&#x27;s Advocate for this statue numerous times over the last year or so. My understanding of Roosevelt is that he was not a racist, and that the statue depicts an incredibly important aspect of his great life. He was a blue blood Ivy League elite from New York, but he was drawn to nature and working class challenges and that largely defined him. Before being president he tried to live in Dakota Territory but for the most part failed. However, he experienced the difficulties and challenges of living in the &quot;wild&quot; which was something not necessary for a young wealthy man from one of New York&#x27;s most respected families. Then many years later he took a very dangerous and ill advised expedition to the Amazon in collaboration with the museum from where the statue was later placed. He learned a lot on that expedition, and we can learn from the record of his experiences there.<p>Without his difficult and challenging experiences in Dakota, Cuba, Amazon, etc, Roosevelt would have just been an ordinary Ivy League millionaire learning about common people and exotic lands from books in his Oyster Bay library. Instead he put himself out there due to whatever motivations he had, and it put him in touch with working people and nature, and these experienced directly impacted his career. He was considered a leader in worker&#x27;s rights and natural preservation. His presidency prioritized conservation and established the national parks. As president he met with African American leaders even though his decision to host such people in the White House was incredibly unpopular in the racist press. He had survived Dakota and San Juan Hill, so he was not afraid to be an advocate and ruffle feathers.<p>In light of him not being an proponent of racism, I think the statue can fairly be interpreted as Roosevelt&#x27;s greatness coming in large part due to his association with people of different races and classes. As a Progressive, he moves in the right direction thanks to his association with the others depicted in the statue. Of course the statue is more than a little crude in depicting this since it was made by people who didn&#x27;t really experience Roosevelt&#x27;s life or maybe care to consider it. I think keeping the statue in the public space can offer us the opportunity to discuss and debate its meaning, and Roosevelt&#x27;s importance to the museum and to the United States. However, that opportunity is now gone since the statue will be moved into hiding.