Chicago advisory panel recommends permanently removing Christopher Columbus statues

The Chicago monuments project advisory committee recommended Friday that the city permanently remove its three Christopher Columbus statues and the Balbo Monument. The panel also advised the city to consider altering or removing around 40 other monuments. It remains to be seen whether the city will follow the recommendations, but Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot suggested in May that she would ignore them. The mayor established the committee following racial justice protests in 2020 and a violent cl