Someone vandalised the statue yesterday, the nation's official Columbus Day observance. Nobody's been charged. City operations chief Guy Costa, who is Italian, condemned the vandalism and feels it's aimed at Italian-Americans.
Critics would like to see the statue near the Phipps Conservatory removed because they view Columbus as responsible for killing off or enslaving indigenous people.
Costa also chairs the city's Columbus Day parade and says that group is working to prevent vandalism and to keep it from being relocated.