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SLO Mayor Harmon leads ban on monuments that honor people

July 20, 2019

Mayor Heidi Harmon

Following objections lodged by San Luis Obispo Mayor Heidi Harmon to a proposed monument honoring President Teddy Roosevelt, the SLO City Council decided on Tuesday to adopt a new policy mandating that monuments honor ideas, rather than people. [Cal Coast Times]

Last year, former SLO councilman John Ashbaugh spearheaded a campaign to honor Roosevelt, the United States’ 26th president, for helping to launch the conservation movement and for once visiting San Luis Obispo. Ashbaugh’s plan called for a bronze statue of Roosevelt by Artist Paula Zima to be placed in Mitchell Park.

Harmon initially responded by questioning why there was a need for more monuments of white men. Harmon suggested there is a nationwide problem in the United States related to racist and sexist monuments.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Harmon said monuments have become controversial and violence has broken out over the maintenance of certain monuments. Harmon also claimed that any person who is worthy of a monument would not actually want to be honored with one.

During the hearing, the council discussed changes to the city public art policy and ultimately decided to direct staff to draft new regulations, which include the mandate that monuments honor ideas, rather than people. Only Councilwoman Carlyn Christianson was opposed to the proposed public art policy changes.

However, numerous members of the public have criticized the Harmon-led effort to ban monuments honoring people. Critics have argued that people should be remembered despite their flaws and that it is possible to erect monuments without promoting racism or sexism.

The public art policy changes will return to the city council at a later date for formal approval.


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I’d guess if Mayor Harmon could she would remove those four “old white guys” from Mount Rushmore.


7

The Constitution Of The United States likely does not meet the Heidi Harmon litmus test. Is this just another reason to revisit the claim of an antiquated constitution? I think not and because of our constitution, Heidi can be anti whatever to sway the do as I say voters.


3

Lost in the “fine print” is that while we can’t have people statues under the new Regressive (I like that word for them too!) rules, we can have people plaques, like the ones they put on new buildings with a list of the mayor’s and city council’s names. How’s that for political hypocrisy?


11

A white woman publicly makes a racist statement against white men, even though she’s white… And then tries to cover up her racism by saying it’s about ideas not race. You can’t make this stuff up. How ironic that all the ideas that anti-white progressives like Harmon claim to adhere too, the ideas that came out of the enlightenment, are exclusively European (white) ideas.


17

I guess there is no option at this point except to embrace this new City policy. In that light, I started a petition at change.org requesting that the first monument erected by the City under this new requirement be one honoring the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution. How about it, SLO City Council, to you embrace the idea individual rights? Here is the link:


http://chng.it/HQjb9BGy


16

Its starting to look like we the people should strip the power from those elected so that they are not able to pass anything without a vote of the people, all these nut balls do is piss away taxpayer monies,make stupid rules and regulations and generally waste time.


38

white woman of privilege. she has no standing.


30

jamie irons is getting a run for his money on the title of “worst mayor ever”


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