On Friday, the National Park Service sought public input on initial renovation plans for Philadelphia’s Welcome Park, located at Second Street and Sansom Walk. On Monday, the park service revoked its invitation after its proposal — which suggested the removal of a small William Penn statue and adding an “expanded interpretation of the Native American history of Philadelphia” — set off a national barrage of commentary.
I unequivocally support the park service’s move toward a redesign of the park’s current interpretation — statue or no statue. As an artist, I dedicated five years of research to Welcome Park, creating a site-specific performance/tour that spoke directly to the statue in question and surrounding design — what it does and doesn’t do.
I detail this not to claim the capital “T” Truth, but to provide my context and perspective in the rigamarole of this news cycle that will flame and die.
I’d like to address concerns and interpretations showing up repeatedly from politicians, newscasters, and across social media platforms, and move the “dialogue” around this Penn statue beyond the current fixation of removal vs. no removal.
Here are some misconceptions about what removing Penn’s statue from Welcome Park means.
We erase his role from history
William Penn deserves his place in Philadelphia’s story. He has one, many times over. Even if his statue were removed from Welcome Park, his icon would not be canceled; it’s ever-present.
Have you seen Penn’s statue atop City Hall? It’s more than 36 feet tall. What about the one at Penn Treaty Park? Oh, and how about the one outside Penn Hospital, which, coincidentally, is named after him, just like the state of Pennsylvania?
To claim the removal of one infrequently visited replica installed in 1982 is erasure or trying to “cancel William Penn out of whole cloth” (according to Republican…
