Cali monument commemorates 2021 protest victims

In the Puerto Rellena sector of Cali, Colombia, a community-built sculpture known as the ‘Monument to the Resistance’ serves as a memorial to those killed during the social protests between April and July 2021. The ten-meter-high structure, shaped like a left arm holding a sign that reads ‘Resiste’, has led locals to rename the area Puerto Resistencia.

The monument was constructed by neighbors in seventeen days using abandoned cement and donated iron bars. It features the face of one of the youths killed during the unrest. The NGO Temblores reported 647 cases of police violence and 20 deaths in Cali during the 2021 protests.

Recent misinformation circulated on social media claiming an earthquake had destroyed the monument, though these images were identified as AI-generated. The monument remains standing despite political tension, including threats from De la Espriella to dismantle it if elected president, and calls from Ivan Cepeda to defend the site.