- Target:
- Kathy M. Sheehan, Mayor - City of Albany, NY - 518-434-5100 - mayor@albanyny.gov
- Region:
- United States of America
- Website:
- www.facebook.com
Albany, NY Mayor Kathy Sheehan signed an executive order on Thursday, June 11, 2020, directing the removal of a statue depicting Maj. Gen. Philip Schuyler from Albany City Hall.
The bronze figure of Major. General Philip Schuyler, Albany’s Revolutionary hero, was the gift to the city of George Clement Hawley, a business man and philanthropist, in memory of his wife, Theodora Millard Hawley. The statue was erected on June 14, 1925.
Philip Schuyler was born on November 11, 1733 in Albany, New York to parents Johannes “John” Schuyler Jr. and Cornelia Van Cortlandt. Schuyler’s family migrated from Amsterdam in 1650 and were related to the families of the old Dutch aristocracy. Schuyler’s second great-grandfather was the first mayor of Albany, New York, the place of his birth.
Philip Schuyler began his military service during the French and Indian War as a captain and was later promoted to major. He partook in the battles of Lake George, Oswego River, Ticonderoga, and Fort Frontenac.
After his first stretch in the military, Schuyler ventured into politics. He began his tenure as a New York State Assemblyman in 1768 and served until 1775 when he was selected as a delegate to the second Continental Congress in May of that year. On June 19, 1775, he was commissioned as one of only four major generals in the Continental Army.
In the summer of 1777, after the evacuation of Fort Ticonderoga, General Horatio Gates attempted to claim precedence over Schuyler and sought Schuyler’s dismissal from service. The matter was taken up in front of Congress and Schuyler was superseded in August of 1777. Schuyler requested a trial in military court to prove his case. Schuyler was acquitted on all charges in 1778, but his reputation was still damaged. He resigned from military service in April of 1779.
Upon his departure from military service he reentered politics and served first as a delegate from New York to the Continental Congress and then three terms in the New York State Senate. He would serve a fourth, only serving a few years of his term before resigning due to poor health. Philip Schuyler died on November 18, 1804.
Alexander Hamilton married Philip Schuyler’s daughter, Elizabeth, in 1780.
Please sign this petition to KEEP the Statue of Philip Schuyler in his home city of Albany, NY.
For 95 years the statue did not bother anyone and no one proclaimed they were offended by Philip standing there. Now he must go?
Philip Schuyler was indeed one of Albany's largest slaveholders. But does that fact that he owned slaves outweigh all the good things Schuyler accomplished?
Ask yourself this. What will we find offensive 20 years from now that we want to hide away? Humanity is a long term experiment. It is trial and error but you shouldn’t throw away the test results.
Eradicating the signs of injustice does not eradicate injustice. It hides the fact that humanity can be cruel to each other. They are symbols of a point in time when one segment of society tried to dominate its beliefs over another.
To ignore that fact, and to try and sanitize symbols of oppression, or hide them, only welcome a newer generation to repeat the same mistakes.
Operating in darkness leads to more darkness. Operating in light gives us all a chance to move in a better direction.
You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it
The Save the Philip Schuyler Statue! petition to Kathy M. Sheehan, Mayor - City of Albany, NY - 518-434-5100 - mayor@albanyny.gov was written by Brian Mack and is in the category Patriotism at GoPetition.