U-Portland removes statues of explorer Clark, slaves

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story said the statue of William Clark was removed on Wednesday. The statue that was removed was York, the slave brought on the journey. The other figures were removed Thursday.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A statue of York, a slave brought along with explorers Lewis and Clark, was removed from the University of Portland Wednesday, with the other figures in the same sculpture removed on Thursday.

The statue of York “had been vandalized a couple of times in the past few days,” University of Portland spokesperson Michael Lewellen told KOIN 6 News. “Because it had become a target and was even part of a hit list circulating on social media, we removed it as a precautionary move for our campus.”

Lewellen said the remaining figures will be removed as a precaution.

The monument to the explorer was sculpted by U-Portland art professor Michael Dente and dedicated on December 11, 1988.

This move by University of Portland comes days after a statue of Thomas Jefferson was vandalized and toppled, then removed, from the Jefferson High School campus in Portland.