Dem Lawmakers Want Father Junipero Serra Statue Mothballed

Senator Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) and Assemblyman James Ramos (D-Highland) seem to find rank criminality a mere afterthought when “diversity” and cultural sensitivities are at play.

Earlier this month protestors yanked down and defaced a statue in Capitol Park of the Spanish missionary Father Junipero Serra.

The Sacramento Bee vividly captured the insouciant mayhem and destruction of the Black Lives Matters adherents.  “One man standing in front of the statue shortly before it’s toppling waved a flag featuring three arrows, an anti-fascist symbol dating to opponents of the Nazi regime in Germany. Another took an aerosol can and, using a lighter to ignite the contents of the can, burned the face of Serra to a chorus of cheers.”

“A number of protesters began striking the statue with various objects, including the man with the three-arrow flag, who wrapped it around a sledgehammer. He and several others wrapped straps around Serra’s head and pulled the statue down in a matter of seconds.”

“The crowd began dancing and jumping on the desecrated statue as California Highway Patrol officers moved in to clear out the park.”

Now, in a surrender to the mob, Sen. Wiener and Assemblyman Ramos are suggesting that the statute should not be put back in place.  Their letter to the Assembly and Senate Rules Committee, which were working on returning the statue, gives short shrift to the sheer criminality that brought the statue down.

The letter starts off with quaint talk of “frustration” over statues.  The “frustration,” they write “has focused on glaring omissions in the historical narratives of these figures. Only select deeds have been spotlighted, contributing to inaccurate assessments of these individuals’ legacies.”

“A more complete and honest appraisal would lead to greater understanding and more accurate context of our history,” the two pols intone. “Conducting a more thoughtful, transparent review of our “heroes” is not about “denying history,” but rather about acknowledging the injustices and suffering they initiated and perpetuated.”

“It is in this spirit that we request a pause in determining the future of the vandalized statue of Franciscan Friar Junipero Serra. California’s Native Americans suffered forced assimilation and servitude that included erosion of language, culture, and religion, as well as acts of violence and abuse under the mission system as founded by Serra. We understand the JointRules Committee is working with Legislative Counsel to draft an opinion on how to proceed with placement of the Serra statue on Capitol grounds.”

They write: “We do not condone vandalism and destruction of property, but we also realize this moment offers a unique opportunity to engender a much deeper and complete knowledge of our state and nation’s history.”

This whole sentence is a rhetorical sleight of hand that obscures the criminality of what went down on July 4th. Saying you don’t condone something is entirely different than condemning it.

Ramos and Wiener then suggest that an advisory committee should be formed to consider replacing the statue with something that better reflects history as they see it.

The Serra statue was placed in Capitol Park after the state approved legislation by Assemblyman Milton Marks (D-San Francisco) in 1965. He authored AB 1124, which authorized the purchase and maintenance of the memorial.

They say that the legislature should “convene an advisory committee of legislators, historians, California Native Americans, and other appropriate persons to assist the Joint Rules Committee in determining the future of the Serra statue. “

“Furthermore, we ask that this “pause” be used to determine whether replacement of Serra’s statue with another monument better representing the state’s mission period and its impact on Native Americans is more appropriate at this juncture in California’s history.”

Wiener’s communications director referred an inquiry from the California Globe to the Rules Committee, which said to talk to the Speaker’s office.

That office did not reply to a request for comment.