I would like to respond to the article "New Londoners to debate future of Columbus statue in light of protests,” (June 10).

In 1928, when New London's statue of Christopher Columbus was presented to the city by its Italian community, Italians — along with the Irish and the Jews — were considered to be non-white, much as Hispanics are today. All across Connecticut, restrictive covenants forbade the sale of homes, in perpetuity, to "Negroes, Hebrews and Italians."

It is also worth remembering that the KKK, whose Connecticut membership peaked at some 18,000 in the 1920s, hated Catholics almost as much as it hated blacks and Jews.

Italian communities across the United States erected statues of Columbus as part of their long campaign to be recognized as Americans deserving of full and equal rights. The statues' message was clear: an Italian got to the New World long before the Mayflower, so Italians belong here no less than the descendants of the Pilgrims.

As we discuss the meaning of the Columbus statue and its future, let us not forget that it was erected 92 years ago by a "non-white" community that was suffering significant discrimination at the hands of an America that saw Columbus, too, as "non-white."

Daniel Robinson

New London