The Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL) on Friday accused Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz of "racism" for supporting the removal of Christopher Columbus statues and demanded that Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate "drop out" of the 2024 election.
In 2020, Minnesota experienced widespread protests following the killing of George Floyd, which included protesters tearing down a statue depicting Christopher Columbus that was later put into storage.
"It was an act of civil disobedience that we need to make sure people feel that there is a proper outlet to address what are legitimate concerns around what they view as a genocidal monument that they have to walk through in their democracy," Walz said after the incident.
IACRL board member Mike Crispi, a Republican who served as a delegate for former President Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention last month, posted on X Friday, "BREAKING: Tim Walz is an enemy of the Italian American Community. He has a long history of being in favor of erasing our culture. He strongly has supported the removal of Christopher Columbus statues. We will call it for what it is: racism. @TheIACRL demands he drops out."
His post included an IACRL press release with the following statement from Crispi, "Tim Walz did nothing to stop radical vandals from targeting the most prominent symbol of Italian-American culture in a flagrant hate crime. He knew they were coming and he did nothing to protect the statue."
Crispi went on to say, "His record as Governor in Minnesota is the most disgraceful record of any governor in the last decade. From allowing rioters to pillage and plunder to standing-down when the mob came for the Columbus statue, Walz allowed the North Star State to become an exemplar of cultural Marxism run amok."
According to the New York Post, the IACRL, which was founded in New York City, has endorsed Republican nominee Donald Trump for president.