Leftist vandals did not satisfy their bloodlust with the removal of Confederate statues; they’ve now begun their assault on religious figures that trigger their social justice warrior sensitivities. Last month, they attacked a statue of recently-canonized St. Junipero Serra with red paint and a swastika; this month they have beheaded the beloved saint.
According to SFGate, “a bronze statue of the Roman Catholic priest Junipero Serra at the Old Santa Barbara Mission was decapitated and doused with red paint on Sunday night or early Monday morning.”
Monica Orozco, executive director of the Santa Barbara Mission, has not decided if they will replace the statue.
“We will let people know once we know more information,” Orozco said. “We reported it to SBPD this morning. It likely happened during the night or early in the morning.”
Known for its beautiful Spanish architecture, the Santa Barbara Mission has been called the “Queen of the Missions,” though social justice warriors would firmly disagree, viewing the missions themselves as reminders of “racist colonialism,” with St. Junipero Serra as their primary target of hate.
Last year, another statue of Serra was also beheaded. Another in Santa Cruz was vandalized with the word “genocide” in late 2015. Just last month during the Confederate statue controversy, a statue of Serra at the Mission San Fernando was defaced with paint.
At the time, locals called for the statue’s removal, falsely claiming that St. Junipero Serra sought the destruction of Native American culture.
“I think the statue should come down from this park, and then put some appreciation to the Native people that live here,” Cristian Ramirez said. “We don’t want this violent history to be praised in our community.”
Ever since Pope Francis canonized Father Junipero Serra in 2015, the Left and SJW snowflakes claim the saint had a violent history toward Native Americans. The LA Times said that “glossing over Junipero Serra’s inhumanity was insult to Native Americans.”
Archaeology professor Reuben Mendoza of Cal State Monterrey Bay debunked this garbage during the controversy.
“When he died, many native peoples came to the mission for his burial. They openly wept. Others of his colleagues and even colonists believed that he would be made a saint because of the way he had lived his life, a self-effacing life of a martyr,” said Mendoza.
“Because of what he had achieved in his life, even then they had talked about his impending canonization.”
The political correctness regarding these religious icons have seeped into the Catholic Church, with some schools now removing statues of Mary and Christ to avoid offending non-Catholic students.