When you think of colonial violence — and we all know you do — do Ivy League universities come to mind?
You might consider Yale in particular.
If you’re two-for-two with “Yes,” this story’s for you.
A campus building was built in 1929. Just to the right was a carving.
Its depiction: A Puritan holding a gun.
A side by him is an American Indian with a shield and bow.
In 2017, the school issued a press release asserting the musket was “pointed toward the head” of the tribesman.
During renovation of the building to accommodate the Center for Teaching and Learning, the project team in consultation with Yale’s Committee on Art in Public Spaces determined that leaving the depiction in place would have the unintended effect of giving it a place of honor that it does not deserve.
“Faculty and other scholarly experts,” Yale said, had determined “the image depicts a scene of warfare and colonial violence toward local Native American inhabitants.”
Did it work?
You can do it either way.
The university has an obligation not to hide from or destroy reminders of unpleasant history…
As part of “not hiding,” Yale covered the musket with removable stone.
The result: an American Indian with weapons and some white guy…tossing a pizza?
Yale covered up a Puritan gun with a stone carving. https://t.co/JB0418utBA pic.twitter.com/EyvZNAKPSx
— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) August 14, 2017
Yale stated that the statue would soon be removed and the monstrous muket will be revealed.
The work would be “made available for study and viewing,” with captions offering “historical context.”
According to The College Fix however, pizza-tossing is still a tribute.
Yale covered it in 2019 with a huge blue box.
And now, it’s a whole new sculpture.
The Fix
Yale replaced the Native American and Puritan carving with a new stone structure depicting two figures — one wearing a Puritan collar — with what appears to be a book between them…
Although no information is available on what became of the 1929 original, the former Yale Law School Dean Anthony Kronman expressed concern about the controversy in 2019.
He condemned The Washington Post’s censorship.
The university’s treatment of the carving reflects the belief, shared by many schools, that our college campuses should be cleansed of names and artifacts that awkwardly remind their students that others in the past held values different from their own. It is hard to imagine a more compelling illustration of the phrase “safe space.”
According to Anthony, safe spaces “leave…students ill-equipped for the unsafe space of our wonderful but abrasive democracy.”
George Will, another critic of colonial maltreatment:
From his WaPo op-ed, “Yale Saves Fragile Students From a Carving of a Musket“:
In reality, both the Native American Indian and Puritan don’t look each other in the face but instead towards the distance. Still, one can’t be too careful, so the musket has been covered with stone. This is unilateral disarmament: The Native American’s weapon, a bow, has not been covered up. Perhaps Yale thinks that armed white men are more “triggering” (this academic-speak means “upsetting to the emotionally brittle”) than armed people of color.
George called Yale the “leader in the silliness sweepstakes.”
Given what’s going on at schools nationwide, I’m not sure there can only be one.
But it’s good that the university took a stand against guns aimed at heads — Yale doesn’t tolerate any foolishness.
Yale Medical School Welcomes Psychiatrist Who Dreams of ‘Unloading a Revolver Into the Head of Any White Person’ https://t.co/pLlgF7JIYB
— RedState (@RedState) June 5, 2021
What if George Will is right? But what if the college incorrectly called something evil? And what if it’s daftly ditched an artist’s innocuous 92-year-old work?
If so, goodness willing, they’ll get it all figured out.
Who better than a few administrators to stop a return of sanity?
If we’re lucky, the school has enough for the job.
Here’s to hoping:
Sounds About Right: Yale’s Administrators Outnumber Its Entire Undergraduate Enrollment https://t.co/OwEyZdAuIa
— RedState (@RedState) November 14, 2021
-ALEX
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