Jackie Robinson Statue Stolen, Burned; Replacement Campaign Started

A bronze Jackie Robinson statue was dislodged from its base and found burned in a trash can Tuesday after it was stolen from a Wichita, Kan., park, per The Athletic, citing the Wichita Fire Department.

The statue, which went up in 2021 at a baseball complex inside Wichita’s McAdams Park courtesy of the League 42 Foundation, “probably won’t be salvageable,” according to Wichita Police Department senior public information officer Andrew Ford. Tuesday’s incident marked the first time the statue was vandalized, per Ford.

Efforts to replace the statue already are in motion. The League 42 Foundation, a youth baseball league in Wichita, started a GoFundMe campaign that exceeded $133,000 as of 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday. The fundraising goal was set at $150,000.

Wichita city council member Brandon Johnson on Tuesday stressed the statue “will only be gone for a short time,” per The Athletic. Additionally, League 42 CEO Bob Lutz noted “a brand new statue that looks exactly like the old one” will be built “in a matter of months” at the same location.

Robinson, who broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947, will be honored league-wide April 15 when MLB holds its annual Jackie Robinson Day.