The initiative and courage of the National Italian American Foundation should be recognized today, as the organization wasted no time in condemning the disgraceful vandalism of the Christopher Columbus Memorial Fountain near Union Station in Washington, D.C.
The Hamas-supporting agitators who have been terrorizing the country in recent months struck again this week. These disgraceful hooligans regularly abuse and miscite the country’s First Amendment to engage in acts of intimidation, violence, and destruction. They are criminal miscreants who take advantage of the country’s liberties and thrive in its indulgence. Defacing the Columbus statue was not an exercise of speech, but of vandalism, which is rightly illegal.
“Hamas is comin,” one of the agitators wrote on the statue in spray paint. The offensive support of a terrorist group is an egregious act in and of itself. The fact that the Columbus fountain was collateral damage warrants accountability. Moreover, Columbus statues and monuments have been vandalized and destroyed far too often due to left-wing political violence.
Too many of the people in power have remained quiet regarding the attacks on Columbus. Others have intrinsically supported, if not encouraged, such actions. Little was done to prevent this most recent act or hold the people who committed this destruction accountable and bring them to justice. Thankfully, the National Italian American Foundation spoke up to denounce the most recent anti-Columbus vandalism.
“The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) strongly condemns the recent acts of vandalism and desecration that occurred yesterday at Columbus Plaza near Union Station in Washington, D.C.,” the organization said in a press release. “A group of protesters, aligned with pro-Hamas sentiments, defaced the statue of Christopher Columbus and burned an American flag. These actions not only disrespect a significant historical figure for Italian Americans but also desecrate a symbol of our nation’s values and freedoms.”
Columbus is an important historical figure in the Italian American community, but also to humanity. Despite recent left-wing initiated historical revisionism, he is unquestionably one of the most important historical figures in human civilization. His daring and daunting voyages, expeditions, and discoveries helped change the world. His legacy has been tarnished by those subscribing to a Howard Zinn-inspired vision of history. The truth, though, remains: Columbus helped open up the entire Western Hemisphere to Europe’s thriving civilization while advancing human knowledge of our world.
NIAF President Robert Allegrini also commented on the vandalism of the 112-year-old monument.
“We are deeply disturbed by these destructive acts,” Allegrini said. “The defacement of the Columbus statue and the burning of the American flag are not forms of protected speech but acts of vandalism that undermine civil discourse and mutual respect in our diverse society.”
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The First Amendment does not protect destruction or violence. It states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” None of this is what happened at the Columbus fountain in the latest episode of the repeated left-wing political violence in the country over the last decade. The kind of violence that seems to regularly go unchecked and result in little, if any, accountability.
NIAF should be applauded for speaking out.