To feel emotional at the slave trader statue

[Millicent10]

being pulled down earlier.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-52954305

This says so much and the symbolism of throwing it in the river is such a suitable ending. Reminds everyone what happened to so many slaves.

@Institutkarite

The statue was put there to celebrate his life and works, it wasn't put there to educate people on his role in the slave trade.

By your argument, we'd have a statue of Reinhard Heydrich et al on the pretext of educating the public on the holocaust.

This protest and the pulling down of the statue has done more to educate the british on their past than any number of history lessons, whether it will do any long term good is another thing.

Toppling one statue of a man complicit in and benefitting from the slave trade is one thing. I think trying to rename everything in the country that you think has associations is re-writing history, and moreover, bloody impractical. Do you even know the story of those places you mentioned, White Ladies Road and Blackboy Hill? I don't know that area, but someone will - check your local museum / library local history people. Both could have been descriptions back then, with interesting stories attached. Do find out - and then if you want, take the German approach referenced somewhere, of the small plaques telling the story of the Jews. I've never seen a more effective war memorial.

I agree with what the historian David Olusoga has said about this, that statues are about adoration and should represent people we celebrate. It can now go into a museum as a part of history.

It should have come down long ago. It's so offensive/upsetting to so many.

Frankly I think having the statue in place was more erasive of history than getting rid of the damn thing.

Not so Impressed with the Churchill statue being vandalised really uncalled for.

Churchill wasn't the great statesman people take him to have been, he had blood on his hands. I don't think that many statues of political figures are warranted.

Long past time for that statue to be down. We cannot change the past but we dont have to venerate slave traders.

Don't agree @willowwispa. Churchill was a great statesman, and a maverick, and he did some pretty bloody awful things during his military career (as did very many in the service of Empire).

Perhaps the remaining plinth could be used in a similar way to the fourth plinthe in Trafalgar Square to showcase works by BAME artists.

Completely daft in my opinion to remove our historical past, must we remove everything built on past mistakes. There are buildings all over the U.K port cities and capital built on profits derived from the slave trade and colonial past.

I think there's a bit of difference between historical buildings and statues though.
The latter is kind of revering historical figures, remembering them.
Why should we have a statue of a slave trader?
I don't think it's white washing history to not have their statues, we can still read books and educate without them.

I've never heard of Edward Colston until today so taking down the statue has helped educate me and probably many others

Top bit was supposed to be bolded as a quote, gah!

I've never heard of Edward Colston until today so taking down the statue has helped educate me and probably many others

Same. Good thing to come out of it.

This is the level of stupidity floating around right now so if the toppling of the statue being in the news helps educate people then maybe some more should be toppled?

Tbh I'm pretty shocked that Bristol council didn't pull it down years ago as it's become apparent there was a big campaign about it. I thought they prided themselves on wokeness? Certainly have a reputation for it. Obviously only for certain things. Still, an hour's direct action has achieved what a decade of democracy failed to do. I guess we make of that what we will.

@iwantmysay

All these protests & at this time, goes to show what an angry and divided nation we are. Where else (in Europe) is this happening? At this time our so called PM's silence is shocking, is he on holiday again?

On the statue, i think its great and Patel is a disgrace.

It's happening in France (riots), in Belgium and other places: www.euronews.com/2020/06/06/black-lives-matter-protesters-take-to-streets-in-europe-despite-pandemic-restrictions

I don't blame Boris for being quiet - whatever he says will be wrong, but both the Chancellor and the Home Secretary are from the BAME community, as was their predecessor.

Not sure about the statue, any more than I was with the demands for 'Rhodes must fall'. I have questions about using our mores to judge those of the past. It's not damaging Edward Colston by pulling down the statue, he is long dead, so what does it achieve? I would have thought the statue achieved more by being there as a constant reminder of what the wealth of Bristol was built on and what needs to change.

I agree with what the historian David Olusoga has said about this, that statues are about adoration and should represent people we celebrate. It can now go into a museum as a part of history.

I've been following him on twitter today, and agree with what someone said in a comment, he's been a "rock of sanity"

*RustyBear

I don't suppose the protestors who started pulling down the Berlin Wall were acting legally...*

I love this!

Never heard of the man until I watched his statue being toppled today on Sky News.

If anyone Irish is reading, it's a bit like when we blew up Nelson's Pillar in 1966. Again if you're Irish, you'll enjoy this podcast from 2016 where the fella who planted the bomb came on the Joe Duffy Show. He was an 4 auld fella years ago but still had a divilment about it. Something about how he describes details tells me that it was him who blew it up - listen to the podcast and see what you draw from it. He starts from about 5 minutes into the podcast (scroll down to Nelson's Pillar).

www.rte.ie/radio1/liveline/programmes/2016/0308/773437-liveline-tuesday-8-march-2016/

We even have a song about his eventual demise lol

History is in the making in the taking down of it, not in leaving it standing.

Nelson being blown up is something my Irish passivist Republican parents were much amused by.

If you're going to have a slave trader statue, be prepared for someone to knock it down. Forcibly, like slave trading is forceful.

Peaceful democracy only works when leaders keep the rules. If they don't, they should be aware that the electorate won't necessarily submit.

Glad they did it. Not much social distancing going on though

Can I smash up the grave of Karl Marx then? After all his was an ideology I deeply disagree with.

This was nothing more than criminal damage, it does the movement no favours and those responsible should be arrested and charged accordingly.

I don't blame Boris for being quiet - whatever he says will be wrong, but both the Chancellor and the Home Secretary are from the BAME community, as was their predecessor.

A Sky News presenter this morning interviewed Matt Hancock and asked him how many black people were in parliament. He went on to mention the Home Sec and Chancellor are of BAME origin and she clarified - No - I asked how many BLACK people. He didn't/couldn't answer. There's your answer.

I'm not quite liking the lumping together of BAME as you might as well just say the Not Whites.

The Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) owned and dealt in slaves.

Presumably this mob will be off to demolish a few mosques next, as dictated by their twisted logic.

@BankofNook
This is the level of stupidity floating around right now so if the toppling of the statue being in the news helps educate people then maybe some more should be toppled?

Mouth actually did a at that tweet then!

W
T
F

Maybe some people will educate themselves as a result of this, I really hope so anyway.