Editing Iconoclasm (section)

=== In the United States ===
[[File:Johannes Adam Simon Oertel Pulling Down the Statue of King George III, N.Y.C. ca. 1859.jpg|thumb|The [[Sons of Liberty]] pulling down the statue of [[George&nbsp;III of the United Kingdom]] on [[Bowling Green (New York City)]], 1776]]During the [[American Revolution]], the [[Sons of Liberty]] pulled down and destroyed the [[gilding|gilded]] lead statue of [[George III of the United Kingdom]] on [[Bowling Green (New York City)]], melting it down to be recast as [[Musket#Ammunition|ammunition]].<ref>[https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/666015 The Destruction of the Royal Statue at New York on July 9, 1776]</ref><ref>[https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-toppled-statue-of-george-iii-epitomizes-the-ongoing-debate-over-americas-monuments-180979463/ A Toppled Statue of George III Illuminates the Ongoing Debate Over America’s Monuments]</ref><ref>[https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/pulling-down-statues-tradition-dates-back-united-states-independence Pulling down statues? It’s a tradition that dates back to U.S. independence]</ref> Sometimes relatively intact monuments are moved to a collected display in a less prominent place, as in India and also [[Post-communist countries|post-Communist countries]].

In August 2017, a statue of a [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] soldier dedicated to "[[Confederate States Army|the boys who wore the gray]]" was pulled down from its pedestal in front of [[Durham County, North Carolina|Durham County]] [[Durham County Justice Center|Courthouse]] in [[North Carolina]] by protesters. This followed the events at the [[2017 Unite the Right rally]] in response to growing calls to [[Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials|remove Confederate monuments and memorials]] across the U.S.<ref>{{Cite news|title=SEE IT: Crowd pulls down Confederate statue in North Carolina|language=en|work=NY Daily News|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/crowd-pulls-confederate-statue-north-carolina-article-1.3411619|access-date=2017-08-15}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Holland|first=Jesse J.|title=Deadly rally accelerates ongoing removal of Confederate statues across U.S.|language=en-US|work=chicagotribune.com|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-confederate-statue-removal-20170815-story.html|access-date=2017-08-15}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=War over Confederate statues reveals simple thinking on all sides|language=en|work=NY Daily News|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/monumental-ignorance-article-1.3424004|access-date=2017-08-28}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|first=Amanda|last=Jackson|title=Protesters pull down Confederate statue in North Carolina|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/14/us/confederate-statue-pulled-down-north-carolina-trnd/index.html|access-date=2017-08-15|website=CNN|date=15 August 2017}}</ref>

==== 2020 demonstrations ====
{{main|List of monuments and memorials removed during the George Floyd protests}}
During the [[George Floyd protests]] of 2020, demonstrators pulled down dozens of statues which they considered symbols of the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]], [[Slavery in the United States|slavery]], [[Racial segregation in the United States|segregation]], or [[Racism in the United States|racism]], including the [[statue of Williams Carter Wickham]] in [[Richmond, Virginia]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Fultz|first=Matthew|date=7 June 2020|title=Crew heard cheers as Confederate general's statue toppled in Monroe Park|work=[[WTVR-TV|WTVR]]|url=https://www.wtvr.com/news/local-news/crew-heard-cheers-as-confederate-generals-statue-toppled-in-monroe-park}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Taylor|first=Alan|title=Photos: The Statues Brought Down Since the George Floyd Protests Began |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2020/07/photos-statues-removed-george-floyd-protests-began/613774/|access-date=2020-07-29|magazine=The Atlantic}}</ref>

Further demonstrations in the wake of the [[George Floyd protests]] have resulted in the removal of:<ref>{{Cite news|first1=Alisha |last1=Ebrahimji|first2=Artemis |last2=Moshtaghian|title=These confederate statues have been removed since George Floyd's death |work=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/09/us/confederate-statues-removed-george-floyd-trnd/index.html|access-date=2020-06-11}}</ref>
* the [[John Breckinridge Castleman|John Breckenridge Castleman]] monument in [[Louisville, Kentucky]];
* plaques in [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville, Florida's]] [[Hemming Park]] (renamed in 1899 in honor of Civil War veteran Charles C. Hemming), which were in remembrance of deceased [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] soldiers;
* the monumental [[obelisk]] of the [[Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument (Birmingham, Alabama)|Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument]] and a statue of [[Charles Linn]] in [[Linn Park, Birmingham, Alabama]];
* a statue of [[Junípero Serra]] in [[Golden Gate Park]], San Francisco;<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-06-21|title=San Francisco Archbishop Outraged Over Toppling Of Golden Gate Park Junipero Serra Statue|url=https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2020/06/21/juneteenth-archbishop-critical-of-toppling-of-golden-gate-park-junipero-serra-statue/|access-date=2020-07-29|language=en-US}}</ref>
* a statue of Confederate [[Robert E. Lee|Gen. Robert E. Lee]] in [[Montgomery, Alabama]];
* the [[Robert E. Lee Monument (Richmond, Virginia)|monument to Robert E. Lee]] in [[Richmond, Virginia]];<ref name="Schneider-Vozzella-2021">{{cite news | last1=Schneider | first1=Gregory S. | last2=Vozzella | first2=Laura | title=Robert E. Lee statue is removed in Richmond, ex-capital of Confederacy, after months of protests and legal resistance | newspaper=Washington Post | date=2021-09-08 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/robert-e-lee-statue-removal/2021/09/08/1d9564ee-103d-11ec-9cb6-bf9351a25799_story.html | access-date=2021-09-08}}</ref>
* the [[Appomattox (statue)|Appomattox]] statue in [[Alexandria, Virginia]], leaving the monument's base empty but intact.

Multiple statues of early European explorers and founders were also vandalized, including those of [[Christopher Columbus]], [[George Washington]], and [[Thomas Jefferson]].<ref name="Asmelash">{{cite web|first=Leah |last=Asmelash |title=Statues of Christopher Columbus are being dismounted across the country|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/10/us/christopher-columbus-statues-down-trnd/index.html|access-date=2020-06-11|work=CNN|date=10 June 2020 }}</ref><ref name="DWilliams">{{cite web|first=David |last=Williams |title=Protesters tore down a George Washington statue and set a fire on its head|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/19/us/portland-george-washington-statue-toppled-trnd/index.html|work=CNN|date=19 June 2020 |access-date=2022-03-20}}</ref>
* [[Christopher Columbus]] was removed in Virginia, Minnesota, Chicago and beheaded in Boston MA.<ref name="Asmelash"/>
* [[George Washington]] statue was toppled in Portland, Oregon.<ref name="DWilliams"/>