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Teddy Roosevelt Was a Great American | National Review
Rich Lowry
Hands off TR.
Now the cancel police have come for Teddy Roosevelt.
A statue of TR on horseback that has stood at the front of the American Museum of Natural History since 1940 is going to be removed by the museum with the assent of New York City.
The statue portrays two figures beside Roosevelt on foot, a Native American and an African, which is taken to be a statement of racial hierarchy, although the depiction is open to interpretation. Roosevelt is also, of course, getting specifically targeted for his racial views.
There is no doubt that he partook of the prejudices of his time and reflected some of its worst intellectual influences, particularly Social Darwinism. But he was the characteristic American of the early 20th century, who exulted in his country and made enduring contributions to it.
It is for that, that we honor him, and the museum of natural history is one of the obvious places to do it, given that his father was a founding member and TR was a great naturalist and conservationist. Indeed, this is why the New York legislature decided to commemorate Roosevelt at the site in 1920.
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https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/06/teddy-roosevelt-was-a-great-american/
