WATCH crowd of protesters shout down Catholic priest attempting to defend statue of Saint Louis in Missouri

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Offended protesters in St. Louis, Missouri shouted down a younger Catholic priest who tried to defend a statue of the town’s namesake. The activists sought to destroy the monument in a wave of statue-toppling sweeping the US.

Priest Stephen Schumacher was filmed in Forest Park defending an equestrian statue of French King Louis IX (1226-1270), the town’s namesake, who was canonized by the Catholic Church.

“Saint Louis was a person who willed to make use of his kingship to do good for his individuals,” Schumacher stated via a loudspeaker to a crowd of indignant protesters demanding to have the statue taken down. He insisted that the king had “nothing to do with Africans,” since through the Crusades he fought in opposition to Muslim Arabs, who themselves conquered North Africa centuries previous to that. 

The priest tried to inform the protesters extra concerning the historical past of the Crusades, however was shouted down a number of instances, whereas some stated, “let him communicate.”

Schumacher additionally requested the group to study extra about Louis IX by visiting the native cathedral. One man responded, saying: “Ultimately, we’re taking that [down] too, although.”

Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists and their allies have been defacing and toppling statues of historic figures, related by some with slavery, racism, and colonialism, everywhere in the nation. In most locations, their actions have been met with nearly no resistance. St. Louis proved to be a unique story, the place an area Catholic neighborhood has been holding prayer classes in Forest Park in protection of the statue.

On Friday, opponents and defenders of the monument held simultaneous rallies. Fierce arguments and episodic fistfights broke out on the occasion, however nobody was harm, native media reported. Some BLM activists threw pink liquid on the counter-protesters.

Earlier than the demonstration, St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura Jones was blasted on social media for calling these against toppling the statue “an alt-right/KKK rally.”

Catholics bear in mind Louis IX for his protection of the Christian religion and numerous charitable endeavors. His critics level out that he actively took half within the Crusades and oversaw the burning of Jewish non secular texts in Paris.

The wave of statue-toppling follows widespread protests in opposition to police brutality sparked by the loss of life of unarmed black man George Floyd by the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota final month. The activists initially focused Accomplice monuments, however quickly started taking down statues of abolitionists and folks akin to Christopher Columbus, in addition to Presidents George Washington and Ulysses S. Grant.

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FILE PHOTO: THe statue of Hans Christian Heg outside the State Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin, March 14, © Wikipedia
Anti-racism protesters in Wisconsin tear down statue of… anti-slavery hero (VIDEOS)

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