The city’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy is seeking public comments on the future of the Frank Rizzo statue. Locals can contribute their thoughts to an online forum, which allows individuals to submit their contact information, a 500-word response about the statue’s future and optional PDFs. The Mayor’s Office will specifically consider feasibility and potential costs of the ideas.
Representatives from the city’s Office of Arts Culture and the Creative Economy, Department of Public Property, Managing Director’s Office, Department of Parks and Recreation and the Mayor’s Office will review the submissions. The administration will then decide in late September if it will follow the city’s policy regarding “Removal, Relocation and Deaccession of Publicly Displayed Artwork.” Under this policy, the administration must give the artist 30 days to respond to the proposed removal. The Art Commission will then offer the public an opportunity to provide public testimonials at a hearing, which will call for a final vote on the statue.
Efforts to remove the statue gained traction last month after a nationwide push by some to dismantle Confederate monuments. That effort grew after a woman was killed in Virginia during a counter-protest to a white supremacist rally, whose participants were purportedly demonstrating against the removal of a Confederate statue.
Rizzo is a former Philadelphia mayor and police chief whose policies and positions were deemed by many to be racist and homophobic.
Individuals can submit their thoughts through 5 p.m. Sept. 15 online at http://bit.ly/2vjB76P or in person and by mail to:
Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy
Ideas for Rizzo’s Future
City of Philadelphia
116 City Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19107