Peace Monuments Related to US/Mexican Friendship

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1851 - Boundary Monument, Friendship Park, on international border between Border Field State Park, San Diego, California (USA), & Tijuana (Mexico). Monument of Italian marble made in New York, shipped around Cape Horn, and erected in 1851 (soon after the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848). When area started being call a Friendship Park has not be determined. Fence now separates the two countries and the monument. US side is open country. Mexican side is urban with a lighthouse & bull ring very close to the monument.

1931 - "Allegory of California. / Alegoria de California," Main staircase between 10th & 11th floors. Exchange's Luncheon Club/City Club, Pacific Stock Exchange Tower, San Francisco, California (USA). Fresco by Diego Rivera [1886-1857].

1932 - "America Tropical," Italian Hall, Olvera Street, Los Angeles, California (USA). Mural by Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros [1896-1974]. "According to the text on a plaque on Main Street, Siqueiros was invited to paint a mural on the second floor exterior wall of the building. The mural (featuring an Indian bound to a double cross, surmounted by an imperialist eagle, and surrounded by pre-Columbian symbols and revolutionary figures) was considered hightly controversial." "The mural was partially whitewashed shortly after its completion, and then fully painted over within its first year on public view, beginning a legacy of censorship that still haunts Los Angeles. In the 1970's, 40 years after it was painted over, the image began to reemerge from the whitewash."

1933 - "Detroit Industry," Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan (USA). A famous series of twenty-seven fresco panels by Diego Rivera [1886-1857]. Gift of Edsel B. Ford. Images show North & South Walls.

May 22, 1933 - "Man at the Crossroads," Rockefeller Center, New York City, New York (USA). Mural by Diego Rivera [1886-1857]. Had many parts including: society women drinking alcohol, pictures of cells (sexually transmitted diseases), Leon Trotsky, and Vladimir Lenin (depicting communism). Lenin infuriated Rockefeller, and the mural was removed. Rivera repainted it at a smaller scale at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City where it can be found today, renamed "Man, Controller of the Universe."

1960 - John F. Kennedy Torch of Friendship, Bayfront Park, Miami, Florida (USA). Contains seals of Latin American countries. "In 1960, the Torch of Friendship monument in Miami was built to signify the passageway for all of Florida’s friends coming from Latin America & the Caribbean. The gas fed flame was meant to act as a welcoming beacon for all new and old immigrants to the nation. [In 1964] it was re-dedicated to the memory of John F. Kennedy Jr. The burning torch sitting 18 feet above Biscayne Boulevard was then said to be an extension of the burning candle then burning at the fallen president’s gravesite in Arlington. Now days, the candle just doesn’t burn at all! Some say its Miami’s way of expressing disgust with the war going on overseas in Iraq and Iran.

June 1968 - Ruta de la Amistad / Route of Friendship, Olympics, Mexico City (Mexico). Nineteen sculptures along a 17 kilometer segment of the Anillo Periferico / Preferential Highway. Designed by international artists for the 1968 Olympic Games.

1968 - Campana de Dolores / Bell of Dolores, Los Angeles, California (USA). Replica of the famous bell which hangs in the Zocolo in Mexico City.

April 15, 1966 - Statue of Abraham Lincoln, Luis G. Urbina Park (since renamed Parque Lincoln), Polanco, Mexico City (Mexico). Gift of the United States presented by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Reproduction of a satue made in 1887 by Augustus Saint-Gaudens for Chicago's Lincoln Park.

January 7, 1969 - Statue of Benito Juarez, Foggy Bottom, Virginia & New Hampshire Avenues, Washington, DC. (USA). Sculpted by Enrique Alciati. "A gift from the people of Mexico in exchange for a statue of Abraham Lincoln given by President Johnson." Juarez is the "George Washington of Mexico," and the statue points to the bust of Washington at George Washington University. Benito Pablo Juarez Garcia [1806-1872] was a full-blooded Zapotec Indian who became the first president of Mexico. He corresponded with Abraham Lincoln to get advice on how to establish a democracy, particularly one plagued with interracial problems.

1969 - Amistad Dam, between Del Rio, Texas (USA). & Cuidad Acuna (Mexico). Image shows both national emblems on the border in the middle of the dam.

1973 - Chamizal National Memorial, El Paso, Texas (USA). "Established to commemorate the Chamizal Convention of 1963 which resulted in the peaceful settlement of a century-long boundary dispute."

1987 - Fuente de los Delfines / Fountain of the Dolphins, Malecon, Puerto Vallarta (Mexico). Sculpted in sister city Santa Barbara, California (USA).

1988 - International World Peace Rose Garden, Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Plaza de las Américas, Núm. 1, Col. Villa de Guadalupe. México City (Mexico). Theme: "Friendship between Mexico and the United States."

1991 - Jardin de la Paz / Peace Garden, Tlatelolco, Mexico, DF (Mexico). Created by Medicos Mexicanos para la Prevencion de las Guerra Nuclear, a chapter of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) & linked to Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR). Large garden contains agora, peace bell, children's statue & other peace monuments. Near site of the 1967 anti-nuclear Treaty of Tlatelolco and the Tlatelolco massacre just prior to the 1968 Olympic Games. Entry #1384 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Photos by EWL.

1993? - Pacific Crest Trail Monuments, on US/Canadian Border (Washington & British Columbia) & on US/Mexican border. Identical wooden monuments 2,650 miles apart at each end of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT).

1997 - Plaza of Peace & Friendship, Rotary Peace Park, Calle Iturbide, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco (Mexico). Park, peace pole & plaque next to the main cathedral & city hall [El Palacio Municipal], according to Entry #1385 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Not found when area combed in December 2006. Image scanned from Bennett.

April 15, 2000 - World Trade Bridge, between Laredo, Texas (USA), & Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas (Mexico). Eight-lane bridge for commercial traffic only. "Named in honor of a free World Trade market, because international trade is one of the key components to the Laredo/Nuevo Laredo economies."

October 31, 2000 - Flame of Friendship /Flama de la Amistad, Convention Center, San Diego, California (USA). By Leonardo Nierman of Mexico City (Mexico). A gift from the Government of Mexico that was presented to the people of San Diego as a gesture of friendship. Has stunning vistas of San Diego Bay. The sculpture is made of polished stainless steel and is nearly 21-feet in height.

2001 - Friendship Monument, Shoreline Boulevard at Lawrence Street, Corpus Christi, Texas (USA). "Bronze sculpture of Captain Blas Maria de la Garza Falcon by artist Sherman Coleman, M.D. The Westside Business Association sponsored this statue. The statue pays tribute to Falcon, an empressario credited with founding the first Spanish settlement north of the Rio Grande, near Petronila in 1764. In 1762, Falcon was commissioned to explore the Nueces River area by Don Jose de Escandon, the Governor of Nuevo Santander, a Spanish Territory extending from the San Antonio River to the Punuco River near Vera Cruz, Mexico. He later brought the first longhorn cattle to South Texas when he established a ranch in the area."

2002 - Torch of Friendship, San Antonio, Texas (USA). Fifty-ton sculpture made in Mexico. A gift to San Antonio from the Association of Mexican Entrepreneurs. According to scu;ptor Sebastian, "Obviously, I thought of all the possible allegorical meanings of a burning torch, such as the fire of friendship, relationships, strength, and creativity. The complexity of the work is that it is in two parts; in this case from two countries, which is complex but the same time satisfying, festive, and friendly."

Future - El Mano de la Paz / The Hand of Peace, Jardin Binacional / Bi-national Garden, Playas de Tijuana, Baja California (Mexico). Hand showing the peace sign. "By Chaa Youn Woo, [Korean-American] Artist. Significant sculpture that will add positive inspiration to a major port of entry to Latin America. Will be located in a high poverty area. Located at the northern most point of Latin America, approximately 20’ from the border of the United States (San Diego) and 60' from the Pacific Ocean. Latin America refers to those countries that speak romance languages like Spanish, French & Portuguese all derived from Latin. Countries in South America, Central America & the Caribbean make up Latin America. In 2008 the Latin American population was estimated at 570 million. The sculpture will become a generator for peaceful energy. A whimsical yet thought provoking peaceful environment will be created for tourists & locals who visit or live in the area, giving the public the opportunity to interact with the Art installation on a daily basis."