A statue of Christopher Columbus was installed in Richmond, Virginia in 1927, where it stood until 2020 when it was torn down by protestors in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and thrown into a nearby lake.

[3] This decision was widely criticized in newspaper editorials published across the United States, especially when it came to light that an opponent of the statue who spoke at the meeting was a member of a coalition that included the Ku Klux Klan.

[2] The ceremony concluded with de Martino pulling a cord to display an Italian and an American flag and the firing of a two-gun salute.

[5] On June 9, 2020, the statue was torn down, spray-painted, set on fire, and thrown into a nearby lake by individuals protesting the May 2020 murder of George Floyd.

[6][7] The protestors stated they were acting in solidarity with Native Americans; vandalism to the statue's base noted it was built on land belonging to the Powhatan.