Statue of USC founder Robert Widney VANISHES after college claimed it had been taken down for ‘cleaning’, as historian claims he’d backed lynchings

A statue for USC founder Robert Widney mysteriously disappeared after being removed for “cleaning,” amid controversy surrounding his legacy of supporting lynchings.

University of Southern California officials told the Daily Trojan Horse that the statue was temporarily removed for “maintenance and cleaning” on November 28, but did not say when it could be returned.

After the ceremonial plinth was also removed from the site, it now appears that it was secretly taken down in the hope of not drawing attention to their decision.

USC told DailyMail.com 'The statue was removed on November 28 for maintenance and cleaning.'

Widney was a celebrated lawyer and judge, but his involvement with the Home Guard Vigilance Committee in the late 19th century allegedly led him to target Native Americans and people of color in extralegal lynchings.

A pedestal that once held a statue of Robert Widney (pictured) lies empty outside the Widney Alumni House on the USC campus, weeks after it was removed for 'cleaning'

Widney was a celebrated lawyer and judge, but his ties to a vigilante group that carried out extrajudicial lynchings in the late 19th century sparked controversy

Widney's statue came under scrutiny during the Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020, at a time when many institutions were being called to cut ties with racist figures.

This prompted USC officials to remove the tribute in June of that year to the university's fifth president, Rufus B. von Kleinsmid, a leading advocate of eugenics.

Eugenics is the concept of selective and forced breeding to control racial populations, and grew in popularity in the late 19th century when Kleinsmid promoted it.

The university removed the Von Kleinsmid Center for International and Public Affairs in response to the BLM movement, and a bust of Von Kleinsmid was also removed from campus following a unanimous vote by the board of trustees.

The building was renamed for Joseph Medicine Crow, an author on Native American history and a USC alumnus.

While it has not admitted to quietly taking down Widney's statue for good, USC also took similar action this summer.

The Trojan track and field stadium was named after Dean Cromwell, a former coach of the university's track and field team who had been accused of racism and anti-Semitism.

The removal of Widney's statue (pictured) comes after USC previously removed tributes to its fifth president from campus amid outrage over his past support for eugenics

The stadium was renamed in honor of athlete Allyson Felix, another USC alum who later became the most decorated American track and field athlete in American history.

Following the renaming and removal of several controversial figures, many felt it was time Widney was subjected to the same scrutiny.

Facing calls for its removal for years, Widney's statue remained standing as he was hailed as one of USC's four founding fathers, credited with its growth in the mid-1800s.

In fact, when his statue was unveiled in 2014, the university praised his record on immigration and character during a time of widespread discrimination.

“One of the most moving stories of his life occurred in 1871, when Widney intervened as violent anti-Chinese rioters stormed through the city, drew his gun and plunged into the crowd to lead several immigrants to safety,” the statement said. university.

But his ties to the Home Guard Vigilance Committee sparked outrage, with historians discovering that the vigilante roamed Los Angeles carrying out lynchings of Native Americans and people of color.

A professor and historian at UC Merced assessed Widney's legacy for the Los Angeles Times in 2020, and found that he was “most definitely” in favor of extrajudicial lynchings.

The legacy of Widney's brother, Joseph Widney, USC's second president, has also come under fire, especially his racist writings in which he wrote that black and white people “cannot live together as equals.”