Fans of Prince are backing calls to replace a statue of Christopher Columbus with a monument dedicated to the late singer in his hometown of Minneapolis.
To this end, a petition has been launched that demands that Governor Dayton and the state legislature remove the city’s Columbus statue replace it “…with a Prince statue and one chosen by the native community.” The move comes during a wider national debate concerning the removal of statues and monument seen to be celebrating the Confederacy and endorsing slavery.
The petition reads: “Across the nation, city governments are choosing to remove statues of white supremacists, slave owners, and those who threatened the livelihood of Black people. Here in Minnesota, communities are reigniting the demand to bring down state’s monument to Christopher Columbus, a man who murdered, raped and enslaved Black and Native peoples in the Americas.
“We, the undersigned, do not believe that Columbus represents the values Minnesotans carry. Rather than glorify a man who wanted to extinguish Black and Native peoples, we should honor members of our community whose leadership we find inspirational.
“We, the undersigned, up submit that the Governor Dayton and the Minnesota State Legislature replace the statue of Columbus with statues representative of Minnesota’s Black and Native communities.”
The petition concludes: “Prince represents Minnesota values and Columbus does not.”
Prince spent his entire life living and working in Minneapolis. His Paisley Park Studios, a $10m complex that housed recording studios, a soundstage and facilities for band and tour rehearsals, was located in the suburbs of Chanhassen near Minneapolis. He also used the studios to put on one-off concerts for fans.
He died in 2016 from an accidental overdose of the opiate Fentanyl.
