Anthony Spadone came from South Carolina – arriving he said just prior to the quarantine – to save the statue. That would be a statue of “Cristoforo Colombo,” whose chiseled likeness gazes over Ridgedale Avenue, this town’s main drag.

Sure, Spadone conceded, there theoretically could be better representations of Italian culture than Columbus, but he said Italians have celebrated and commemorated the man from Genoa for generations and there’s no reason to stop now. Not all agree. The George Floyd murder continues to prompt campaigns against all forms of perceived bigotry, past and present.