The Soldiers Monument

On October 12, 2020, the Soldiers Monument, in the heart of the Santa Fe Plaza, was attacked by a mob and the top section, the obelisk that stood atop the Soldiers Monument, was torn down. This mob attack was premeditated and carried out by organized vandals and activists that were largely from outside our community. The attack came after Mayor Webber made several public, negative and ignorant statements about the Soldiers Monument and the history behind it.

As the city of Santa Fe has wrestled about how to move forward, the city council and Mayor Webber commissioned a company called “Artful Life” to form a “CHART” process, whose goal was to involve the citizens of Santa Fe and try to determine the best way forward. Should the monument be removed, replaced or rebuilt? Recently, a district judge ordered the city to move forward—by deadline— with a plan of action.

With a quarter million-dollar taxpayer funded expenditure in the CHART program, the results showed that 54.62% of the residents of Santa Fe wanted the Soldiers Monument re-built. Only 33% said to replace it with something else. The people have spoken.

As your Mayor of Santa Fe, it will be my intention to follow the law and the will of the majority to re-build the Soldiers Monument. I will also follow the proper legal procedures to have the north-facing plaque (that has been the subject of controversy) deleted or replaced without the offensive language.

As your Mayor of Santa Fe, I will not give in to fear and unreasonable demands to allow the aesthetics and historical values of our city be determined by mob rule.