Three years ago Walter Alomar asked the city's former administration to remove the statue of Christopher Columbus at Slocum Park on Broadway, the city's historic main thoroughfare. He was told "no". Last week, he asked again and got the same answer.    

"The administration has changed but the policy has remained the same," Alomar said, referring to Mayor John Pallone who won the office in 2018 over longtime mayor Adam Schneider. The six-foot-tall marble statue of Columbus is the latest cultural flashpoint between groups who want to preserve the historical significance of their ancestors versus those who feel their misdeeds should outweigh any other legacy.