Baltimore Mayor Jack Young Vetoes Bill Renaming Columbus Obelisk Monument To Memorialize Police Violence Victims
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore Mayor Bernard C. "Jack" Young has vetoed a bill that would have renamed the city's Columbus Obelisk Monument to memorialize victims of police violence.
In a letter to City Council President Brandon Scott, Young wrote he vetoed the bill, which would have changed the name of the monument in Heinz Park to the Victims of Police Violence Memorial, due in part to opposition to Police Commissioner Michael Harrison.
Harrison made similar comments in a Facebook post in September.
The bill was the latest effort to remove Christopher Columbus' name from monuments in the city; on July 4, protesters tore down a statue of Columbus in Little Italy and threw it into the Inner Harbor.
The outgoing mayor added he's confident the city will find "meaningful and productive ways" to remember police violence victims.
The council passed the bill 11-4 in October.