NYC residents and people across the country called for the removal of the controversial Theodore Roosevelt statue in front of the legendary American Museum of Natural History. Months later, the removal happened, as requested by the museum as itself.
The statue in front of The Museum shows the former New York State Governor and President of the U.S., Theodore Roosevelt, riding on horseback with an Indigenous man and an African man standing below him on each side. The Museum released a statement on June 21, 2020 requesting for the removal of the statue and former Mayor Bill de Blasio confirmed the news (since the statue is actually owned by New York City). After 82 years in front of the museum, it has officially been removed.
The statue will go into storage for now, however The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library that is expected to open in North Dakota in 2026 made an agreement with NYC for a long-term loan of the statue. The library says they may consider displaying the station saying it “would enable it to serve as an important tool to study the nation’s past.” This decision is supported by the members of the Roosevelt family.