Girl Scouts Seek To Have Women Added To Bronze Statues In Central Park
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The Girl Scouts have joined an effort to break the bronze ceiling in Central Park.
As WCBS 880's Stephanie Colombini reported, the sculptures of historical figures that appear in Central Park all represent men. But Girl Scouts such as Phoebe Bergan, 10, with Troop 3484 in Manhattan, are trying to change that.
"We just want to help other girls have an idol who they can look up to in Central Park," Phoebe said.
Phoebe's troop teamed up with the Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony statue fund. They are raising money to put up a monument to the two suffragists in the park.
Stanton's great-great granddaughter, Coline Jenkins, said they would like to have the statues up by 2020, the centennial of the women's right to vote.
"This will be a nationwide celebration, and New York City and Central Park will be the epicenter," Jenkins said.
It will cost about $500,000 in private donations to erect the bronze at the West 77th Street entrance to the park. About as much is needed to cover landscaping and an educational program. More than $150,000 has been raised so far.
The 23 statues and busts honoring men in the park include representations of John Quincy Adams, Daniel Webster and even a famed foreigner, Giuseppe Mazzini, who helped create the modern Italian state.
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