Union Square: George Washington

The power of this statue seems to radiate outwards in the form of descending stairways and an open square area to the south of Union Square Park.

Washington cuts an impressive figure on its own, but can function as a powerful background symbol to groups utilizing the space. While I was walking around, the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was setting up an elaborate event. I cut them out of the photo frame, though :P

I find it pretty interesting that this statue of Washington, a Founding Father and war-hero, has been a meeting point for many anti-war protests and anti-war culture in this new millennial war. Washington here sometimes functions inversely to the purpose of war memorials, which is often to memorialize the events of war in a romantic way, charging the memorial itself with meaning for the citizens for whom it has been built.

Walking around the perimeter of Union Square on any day will bring  you into contact with artists whose work protests various violences done by the American government. I have been to more than one anti-war rallies or anti-drug enforcement marches. If I want any sort of Fulun Dafa or Free Tibet memorabilia, I can find it within the eyeshot of George Washington.