Removal process begins for controversial San Jose statue of Thomas Fallon
SAN JOSE -- On Tuesday morning, James Dominguez couldn't believe what he was seeing. It's an official start to the last days of the controversial Thomas Fallon statue in downtown San Jose.
"Considering that this is a genocide prevention and awareness month, it's a good start," James Dominguez, a Muwékma Ohlone Tribe member.
James told KPIX that after more than 20 years of protesting, this is a victory.
"Having the statue taken down is a huge relief for a lot of people as well because a lot of people have been fighting and protesting around the statue for it to be taken down," Dominguez added.
The decision was made in 2021 when the San Jose City Council voted to remove the sculpture. It's located at the downtown intersection of Julian Street and St. James Street.
The statue depicts Thomas Fallon raising the American flag over San Jose in 1846 during the California campaign of the Mexican-American war. For Dominguez and many others, it's disrespectful.
"As a community, it means that we're moving forward and not celebrating someone who encouraged genocide and profited off of the genocide of Indigenous people of the area," Dominguez said.
So he patiently waited, recording every second, while workers broke the concrete.
In a statement, the City of San Jose confirmed that the statue would be entirely removed by May 4th.
Removal costs are estimated to be up to $450,000. As for the statue's ultimate fate, the city says it will be placed in storage without any plans to be relocated.
"With this statue and other issues means that people in the Bay Area are coming together to fight back these policies and these ideas and these icons and bring justice and make it a new era of freedom," Jonathan Lockwood, Muwékma Ohlone Nation spokesperson explained.
A handful of people who spoke to KPIX agreed, saying the statue needs to go.
"These kinds of things of looking at history through different lenses is always challenging, but I think that when we realize that it represents something that we shouldn't be proud of, certainly for certain segments of our population, then I think we need to do the right thing," said San Jose resident Bill Souders.
A movement that James hopes keeps reshaping the history of Indigenous people in California.