Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza
Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza | |
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Location | Phoenix, Arizona |
Coordinates | 33°26′53″N 112°05′39″W / 33.448112°N 112.094257°W |
Operated by | City of Phoenix |
The Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza is an
History
The plaza was established on March 9, 1978, by the
Much like the National Mall on which it is loosely based, the Legislative Governmental Mall is intended as an open-air public space with monuments, memorials and gardens. Some of these monuments were erected before the plaza itself, such as the monument to USS Arizona, dedicated on December 7, 1976.
The plaza's location in front of the state capitol has made it a meeting place and a focal point for
Monuments and memorials
The plaza is home to 30 memorials to individuals, organizations, and events. Among the memorials is one dedicated to the
The full list of memorials includes:
- Wesley Bolin Memorial Marker
- Father KinoStatue
- 158th Regimental Memorial
- The Bill of Rights Monument
- Arizona Pioneer Women Memorial
- Ten Commandments Memorial
- Civilian Conservation Corps Memorial
- 4th Marine Division, World War II
- Law Enforcement Memorial
- World War I Memorial
- Confederate Troops Memorial
- Jewish War Veterans Memorial
- Rev. Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
- Armenian MartyrsMemorial
- Desert Storm Memorial
- American Merchant Seaman Memorial
- Father Albert Braun Memorial
- Arizona Peace Officers Memorial
- Korean War Memorial
- USS Arizonamast
- USS Arizona anchor
- USS Arizona 14-inch gun
- USS Missouri 16-inch gun
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial, including a sculpture by Jasper D'Ambrosi
- Ernest W. McFarlandMemorial
- Purple Heart Memorial
- Arizona Workers Memorial/ El Pasaje
- Arizona Crime Victims Monument
- Arizona Law Enforcement Canine Memorial
- Arizona 9/11 Memorial
- Navajo CodetalkersMemorial
- Operation Enduring Freedom Memorial
- Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshot Crew
Controversies
Some monuments have been criticized; some have become the focus of legal battles.
Ten Commandments monument
The Ten Commandments was erected in 1964 by the Fraternal Order of Eagles in connection to Cecil B. DeMille and his 1956 film The Ten Commandments; it was moved to the park more than a decade later. In 2003, the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union tried to have it removed arguing that it serves no secular purpose and thus violates the separation of church and state.[4] The monument remains in the plaza.
Arizona 9/11 Memorial
The memorial to commemorate the
Arizona Confederate Troops Memorial
In the early 1960s, the United Daughters of the Confederacy funded a "Memorial to Confederate Soldiers" as part of the group's efforts to memorialize the short-lived eight-month occupation (August 1861 to March 1862) of the so-called Confederate Arizona. On June 19, 2020, Sean Brennan doused the stone "Memorial to Confederate Soldiers" with red paint before a protest in support of Black Lives Matter.[6]
On June 30, 2020, the Daughters of the Confederacy requested state officials to return the monument in addition to the Jefferson Davis Highway monument. On July 23, 2020, the monument was removed from the plaza.[7][8]
See also
- List of historic properties in Phoenix, Arizona
- USS Arizona salvaged artifacts
References
- ^ "HB2104 – 461R". Arizona House of Representatives.
- ^ "100,000 are expected for pro-migrant march". The Arizona Republic.
- ^ "Immigration march cost Phoenix over $300,000". The Arizona Republic.
- ^ "ACLU: Thou shalt not use Ten Commandments monument at State Capitol". Arizona Daily Sun. July 26, 2003.
- ^ "Never Forget: Six 9-11 memorials around Phoenix". KNXV. September 8, 2016.
- ^ "I did the right thing Man arrested on suspicion of painting Arizona Confederate memorial speaks out". Arizona Central. June 22, 2020.
- ^ Oxford, Andrew. "Confederate monument outside Arizona Capitol returned to donor". The Arizona Republic.
- ^ "Monuments to the confederacy stand in Arizona". The Daily Wildcat.