Proponents say the statue, in place since 1888, symbolizes colonialism, oppression and segregation of the indigenous and African-American peoples of America. The CUP Capgirem representatives say the statue should be removed, along with the base, as it pays homage to Columbus' colleagues and patrons, including King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.
According to the proposal, the Columbus statue should be moved to a museum "to help an understanding of history," and be replaced with a memorial to victims of oppression, celebrating resistance to colonialism and imperialism.
Party members, alongside their demands for the removal and replacement of the statues, are also calling for Columbus Day, celebrated on October 12, to be struck from the calendar, as the date not only marks "an intolerable act of colonialism and imperialism," but also, "the genocide of the indigenous American population by colonist-conquistadors, and an act of aggressive Spanish nationalism against all the peoples that it oppresses and has oppressed."
The demands enjoy support. Last year, Barcelona mayor Ada Colau said the country would not be marking Columbus Day, "a genocide" in his terms, with a $900,000 military parade.
Cádiz mayor José María González tweeted: "We never discovered America; we massacred and suppressed a continent and its cultures in the name of God."
The initiative has been met with criticism as well, particularly from the liberal Convergència Democràtica de Catalunya (CDC) party branch. According to councillor Joaquim Forn, "the city has other problems to face at the moment" such as "the raising of rents and unemployment" and described the proposal as "frivolous."
The unionist Ciutadans party refused to support the proposal and accused CUP of "mixing up changes with nonsense."
