The statue featuring Fr. Pierre-Jean De Smet stood in front of Fusz Hall for more than 60 years until its removal last Wednesday. Its new home will be inside the private Catholic university's art museum, a building just north of campus, The College Fix reported.
"In more recent years, there have been some faculty and staff who have raised questions about whether the sculpture is culturally sensitive," Clayton Berry, SLU's assistant vice president for communications, told St. Louis Magazine. "Hearing that feedback, the decision was made to place the piece within the historical context of a collection that's on permanent display in our SLU Museum of Art."
The De Smet statue has long been the target of criticism by students who believe it symbolizes white cultural dominance and slavery.
But what about the 'Gateway Arch' which depicts the invasion route of evil white colonists ?