Monuments have been created and put up to show the importance of an event, a person, or group of people. They provide a foundation for the social upbringing of today’s society. They’re set in place for remembrance of what our society was like years prior. Sometimes they go unnoticed because there are many ways of defining a monument. The most popular forms are plaques or statues. Due to recent controversy about particular Confederate monuments and whether they should stay or be taken down in Charlottesville, North Carolina, Mayor De Blasio is being asked to conduct a thorough examination of the monuments in New York City. He has plans to come up with a criteria for evaluating monuments based on a set of questions that the Mayor’s office could use to represent the progress of American history. In my view, guidelines for the criteria could potentially include location, who/what the monument represents, what impact it has, and why it is significant to today’s society.

A monument has a big impact on the people around it and its location. An example of a monument with an appropriate location would be the Frederick Douglass monument that was recently placed in Harlem. The monument is  significant to Harlem’s African American society because Fredrick Douglass largely impacted the black community with his heroic actions as an abolitionist. The monument shows how important he is to African American history and reminds us of the great things he accomplished at great risks. However, if we were to place this monument in another area or community, there might be a debate on its social impact in the community. Based on this we must create a criteria to evaluate a monument that includes its location and whether or not it is relevant to that neighborhood or population. Furthermore a monument’s location can impact the community, either positively or negatively. According to Archivolti, monuments can help a community economically. Most bring about jobs and more money around that area is due to the fact that many tourist may be interested in viewing a specific plaque or statue.

Moreover, when creating a monument many tend to think about who it’s for and what it should represent. Thus the criteria for evaluating a monument’s status  should break down whether this person contributed to American society. An example of that would be the Christopher Columbus monument located in Columbus Park in Brooklyn. Christopher Columbus, according to American textbooks, he discovered America.That information, as we know, isn’t historically accurate because Native Americans already owned and lived on the land.  According to Zahniser, Columbus Day is now being renamed “Indigenous People’s Day”.Critics may say “Why Columbus? He didn’t do anything important.”. When deciding on whether a monument is good in its community, one must ask if it has positive or negative connotation behind it. The most important thing is to keep a monument if it doesn’t bring about hate.

Similarly, a monument’s impact should show the “ link between the past, present and future” (Amemco.us). It should show American growth from a particular event or set of people. Monuments have the ability of bringing a community together or tearing them apart. Most are used for the grieving of those who have passed away. Examples of that would be the 9/11 waterfall for all those that died during the four coordinated terrorist attacks, the Prison Ship Martyrs monument put in place for remembrance of the prison and soldiers who died during the Revolutionary War, and even the African Burial Ground National Monument that was put in place in [dedication] to Africans of early New York and Americans of African descent. (National Park Service). The impact of a monument is very important because without significance, there is no real reason to keep a monument standing. It can be relocated to where it is best suited.

This brings me to my last criteria used to evaluate a monument which is how it affects society today. For example, some critics have said that monuments bring about gentrification. Gentrification is “the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces poorer residents” (Merriam-Webster). Gentrification occurs because many neighborhoods try to renovate for the attraction of that monument or relating to the removal of it. Gentrification also relates to the maintenance of monuments because with the desire to improve them may be to keep up with the neighborhood. These changes make our mayor question whether they help the economy or not. Along with that is the question of who pays for these improvements or removals. Rumor has it that they are paid for by taxpayers.

In conclusion, the protest of the removal of a statue of confederate icon General Robert E. Lee saw great tragedy, being described as one of the largest white supremacist events in recent  American history. Mayor De Blasio is being asked to conduct a thorough examination of the monuments in New York City. Criteria for these examinations could potentially include location, who/what the monument represents, what impact it has, and why it is significant to today’s society.  

Work Cited

1. Archivolti, Raffaele. “Why Preserve and Restore? Importance of Saving Historical Monuments.” Linkedin, Raffaele Archivolti, 11 Nov. 2014, www.linkedin.com/pulse/20141111100252-151087658-why-preserve-and-restore-importance-of-saving-historical-monuments.
2. Amemco. “Important Monument Information.” Important Monument Information, www.amemco.us/monument_info.htm.
3. “Gentrification.” Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2017.
4. NPS. “History & Culture.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 10 May 2016, www.nps.gov/afbg/learn/historyculture/index.htm.  
5. Zahniser, David. “L.A. City Council Replaces Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day on City Calendar.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2017. Web. 10 Oct. 2017.