American Museum of Natural History removes statue of Theodore Roosevelt

January 21, 2022

The American Museum of Natural History in New York City removed a statue of the 26th President of the United States,, on Thursday following over a year of controversy. The statue, officially the "Equestrian Statue of Theodore Roosevelt," depicts Roosevelt riding a horse flanked by a and an  at either side on foot.

The statue had stood at the steps of the museum since 1940 as a tribute to the former president who the museum notes "as a devoted naturalist and author of works on natural history".

The museum requested the statue be removed in June 2020 following of  in Minneapolis. The museum said: "the statue itself communicates a racial hierarchy that the Museum and members of the public have long found disturbing."

The request for removal was supported by former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, Roosevelt's great-grandson and the  (NYCPDC). The NYCPDC resolved to remove and temporarily store the statue.

The has defended the statue. Club leader Gavin Wax told Fox News in 2020: "this was about a cultural revolution engulfing our nation. We need to stand up, we have history on our side." In November, it was announced that the statue would be moved to the in, North Dakota.