Professor wants Illinois to return Santa Anna’s prosthetic leg to Mexico

A professor and her students visiting from Texas want Illinois to send the prosthetic leg belonging to the villain of the Battle of the Alamo back to Mexico.

St. Mary’s University professor Teresa Van Hoy said the leg of Mexican general Santa Anna that was captured by soldiers from Illinois during the Mexican-American War should be returned to Mexico, not left on display in the Illinois Military Museum in Springfield. She said the display is akin to a freak-show exhibit.

“It only shows Santa Anna,” Van Hoy said. “It is only a caricature, not a representation of the sacrifice made by Illinois soldiers.”