Carmel removes Junipero Serra statue

CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, Calif. (KION and AP)

Carmel-by-the-Sea has removed the statue of Father Junipero Serra by Serra Avenue and Camino del Monte, on Tuesday. Mayor Dave Potter tells KION this was a proactive measure, with other Serra statues being vandalized and taken down by protesters across California.

Potter says the council is going to discuss what to do with the statue moving forward, adding he is not aware of any threats locally against the statue.

In 2015, a statue of Father Serra was knocked down and painted at the Carmel Mission Basilica, among other acts of vandalism. That incident was just days after the canonization of Junipero Serra by Pope Francis. Serra founded the mission and was buried there after he died in 1784.

The Catholic missionary's statue was was one of a number toppled by protesters in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park last week. In another incident, the Los Angeles Times reports the statue in Father Serra Park was brought down Saturday by Indigenous activists. The 18th century Roman Catholic priest founded nine of California's 21 Spanish missions. Native Americans were forced to stay at those missions after they were converted or face brutal punishment.

The California Catholic Conference released a statement, before Carmel's decision, criticizing the removal of Serra's statues saying in part, “the historical truth is that Serra repeatedly pressed the Spanish authorities for better treatment of the Native American communities... In working with Native Americans, he was a man ahead of his times who made great sacrifices to defend and serve the indigenous population and work against an oppression that extends far beyond the mission era."