×
GreekEnglish

×
  • Politics
  • Diaspora
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Cooking
Friday
20
Feb 2026
weather symbol
Athens 14°C
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • World
  • Diaspora
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Mediterranean Cooking
  • Weather
Contact follow Protothema:
Powered by Cloudevo
> World

Could the racist past of Mt. Rushmore’s creator bring down the monument?

Things are taking a turn to the surreal...

Newsroom July 3 04:12

Confederate President Jefferson Davis has been toppled from the most iconic street in Richmond, Va., and his neighbor, rebel Gen. Robert E. Lee, may soon follow. A U.S. vice president and ardent slavery defender, John C. Calhoun, was plucked from his 115-foot perch in the center of Charleston, S.C. And President Theodore Roosevelt may soon disappear from the steps of New York City’s American Museum of Natural History.

Is there any monument in the United States that’s too big to fail a racial history test? A piece of public art with a connection to our checkered past that is too important, too monumental, to be removed from the face of America? Could Mt. Rushmore be that ultimate test?

We could soon find out. President Trump is planning to spend Friday watching the fireworks — and, no doubt, lobbing a few verbal ones — in the Black Hills of South Dakota. His visit will likely remind Americans that Rushmore’s presidential problem is as plain as the nose on George Washington’s face. Washington (owner of 123 slaves) and Thomas Jefferson (who enslaved more than 600 humans throughout his life) are only the beginning. Roosevelt’s mixed legacy — the Smithsonian flat-out calls him a “racist” even while noting he invited Booker T. Washington to dine at the White House — adds another pockmark on those faces of history.

See Also:

>Related articles

The strengthening of the Greece–USA strategic defense relationship was at the center of the meeting between Dendias and a delegation from the US Congress

Saudi Arabia may acquire uranium enrichment capabilities with the blessing of the US

A close associate of Jeffrey Epstein and recruiter of girls was ready to expose the network, but suddenly…disappeared

PM Mitsotakis announces €3.5 billion support measures for economy

Yet Mt. Rushmore’s hold on history is threatened by elements that go beyond the question of whether its subjects merit memorializing. Even before the first chip of rock had been hewn from the mountainside, Native Americans objected that the carving was on land they considered both sacred and stolen. Less controversial at the time was the past of Rushmore’s creator, an enigmatic Danish American named Gutzon Borglum. By the early 1900s Borglum was a celebrated sculptor, especially of Lincoln statues. He was also an avowed racist.

Read more: The Los Angeles Times

Ask me anything

Explore related questions

#Black Lives Matter#extreme left#ideology#left#Liberals#Mt. Rushmore#neo-liberals#politics#usa#wing#world
> More World

Follow en.protothema.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news

See all the latest News from Greece and the World, the moment they happen, at en.protothema.gr

> Latest Stories

What would happen if drones flew over Greek airports? The state apparatus is “training” for hybrid threats and illegal flights

February 20, 2026

New Ministry of Interior–Google partnership to boost AI skills in the public sector

February 20, 2026

Brad Pitt’s secluded accommodation on Hydra: Why he chose the small hotel in Vlychos (video-photos)

February 20, 2026

Zelensky shocked his ministers according to WSJ: “Get ready for three more years of war”

February 20, 2026

The strengthening of the Greece–USA strategic defense relationship was at the center of the meeting between Dendias and a delegation from the US Congress

February 20, 2026

Temporary gov.gr Service Interruption on Sunday due to scheduled upgrade

February 20, 2026

Saudi Arabia may acquire uranium enrichment capabilities with the blessing of the US

February 20, 2026

Giannis Aggelakas: Transforms into “The Little Prince” on the Stage of Stegi

February 20, 2026
All News

> Environment

40-year record for Mediterranean monk seal births in Greece – watch the video

In recent years, we have been witnessing a remarkable recovery of Mediterranean monk seal populations in Greece, according to MOm. The number of recorded newborns is impressive, including births in new breeding areas for the species

February 17, 2026

The deepest Blue Hole in the oceans has been found: The phenomenon that puzzles experts (video)

February 17, 2026

SOA Greece takes action for the Mediterranean: Youth, science, and solutions for invasive species

February 16, 2026

Acherontia atropos: The moth with the skull on its chest

February 12, 2026

Astronomical “parade” in February with six planets appearing: How and when the rare phenomenon will be visible

February 12, 2026
Homepage
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION POLICY COOKIES POLICY TERM OF USE
Powered by Cloudevo
Copyright © 2026 Πρώτο Θέμα