To be glad that I don't live in Ashbourne?

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Locals there have seized a racist caricature statue and hidden it to keep it safe from removal. It's supposedly with a local Tory councillor, who laughed and hung up when phoned for comment.
AIBU to think that is indicative of a racist unpleasant place?

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jun/09/derbyshire-towns-bust-of-black-man-seized-by-defiant-locals

I've been to Ashbourne many times and it seems no better and no worse than most other places in the UK for this sort of thing. It's a nice, small town on the edge of The Peak District, not very multicultural! It would be ridiculous to say that the activities of a few reflect on the whole place. We should also be careful about the accuracy of media reporting and the highly charged atmosphere which prevails (understandably) at the moment.

I believe you're referring to a wooden head (not really a statue but OK) which was part of an archway over a street advertising a pub. Not sure if it's meant to represent an African or a Turkish person but it has an historic significance to the town. Maybe it should be moved to the museum.

[quote frumpety]@bibbitybobbitycats wasn't it 40,000 to get it removed and 4,000 to keep it ?[/quote]
Yes, sorry I misread it. The population of Ashbourne is about 9,000. I wonder how many of those are on the 42,000 to get rid and how many on the 4,000 to keep?

@Nihiloxica

A tolerance for this sort of thing indicates a certain way of thinking IMO.

If only there was some way we could ban thinking in certain ways...

We might be able to come up with a snappy name for it so people knew not to do it.

@MarginalGain never

Apologies. I phrased it badly. I should have said "indicates racist attitudes", but I was trying to be diplomatic.

As soon as they put it up again I guarantee you it's coming down one way or another.

I think there's a perception in this country that there's a kind of "harmless, cheeky fun" racism. And that's a huge part of the problem.

Your OP seems quite misleading. Even the Guardian article doesn't present what's happening with as little nuance. It seems the petition to take it down was completed by people who don't live there. It's been taken it down until they can have a local consultation. That seems fine. Some people who were advocating taking it down wanted it kept in a museum. Presumably some people just wanted it destroyed. Others wanted to keep it where it was. Surely local ownership of the issue and the decision is the best way to proceed?

They took it down to stop it from being damaged. It's being kept for safety and will be displayed in a museum. If you are ok with the statue in Bristol being pulled down then you should be ok with this or is it because it's not the 'right' kind of person doing it?

It's the fuckers who loved it despite it being crap that want it down now

So many people loved it. The hypocrisy is amazing.

Why is league of Gentlemen except from this cleansing?

@RaspberryIsMyJam

They took it down to stop it from being damaged. It's being kept for safety and will be displayed in a museum. If you are ok with the statue in Bristol being pulled down then you should be ok with this or is it because it's not the 'right' kind of person doing it?

^^this

YABU; they are doing the right thing.

This attempted censorship of history and the destruction of statues is wholly out of order. People need to take a good long look at themselves; shame on them.

They took it down to stop it from being damaged. It's being kept for safety and will be displayed in a museum. Someone is quoted as saying 'Locals will allow it to stay quiet for a while and let the media attention die down and then see it’s restored.' By which one assumes they didn't mean 'to a museum'.

I think what bothered me was how the local councillors, or at least some of them, appear to be involved. I agree. It's very troubling.

The 'best' bit of the reports IMO is the 'It's not black anyway, it's Turkish.' a) it has a very exaggerated 'squashed' nose, more associated with caricatures of black faces and b) well that's all right then

I grew up there and my family lived there for hundreds of years. I’ve never liked it. It should go.

The place a huge majority wanted it taken down? Okay. It's been removed and I doubt it will go back up, if those who it belongs to want to keep it and not have it ripped down and thrown in a river it seems fair enough.

@cdtaylornats

I notice no one is rushing to shut down the schools and hospitals endowed by these people.

I don't see many Rhodes scholar's handing back the grants.

The people hiding this statue have been endowing schools and hospitals and handing out grants? Tell us more, do.

Doesn't the fact that the nasty Tory councillor felt the action was "necessary" demonstrate that there is a body of locals who want the statue removed?

Ravenclaw, that's a rather unfortunate remark given OP's update

If we destroy everything we don't like now how can we show people in the future what it was and why we now find it offensive?

Weird argument, @RoomR0613. The obvious way to do that would be to put it in a museum, but that's not what the statue's self-appointed protectors want - they want it left where it is.

Take your argument to its logical conclusion and all those plaques saying what a lovely generous bloke Jimmy Savile was would still be in place.

Unfortunately, this kind of thing will now happen, because a precedent was set in Bristol. Disregarding all the rights and wrongs of this situation, if you allow a mob to tear down one statue, then others with opposing groups will also see it only fair if they can do the same - or in this case, take a sculpture off for 'safekeeping'. That's exactly why I was against the tearing down of the statue in Bristol in the way it was done, if democratic processes aren't followed through, it's a free for all.

I'd never live there after them closing their Waitrose.

I notice no one is rushing to shut down the schools and hospitals endowed by these people.

If you take the example of Colston the Boys and Girls secondary schools are fee paying and back when i was at school in the same town was as white as white could be (as was my school). So if they now open up some of these places to do what they were supposed to do in the first place (educate and house the poorest in society) that would be a good way of helping to mitigate, say, the 19,000 slaves that died on their way to the plantations. Or not?

Do you even know when Ashbourne is?

Try reading OP's posts, @Toomboom. I think you'll find she definitely knows both where and when it is.

@heartsonacake

YABU; they are doing the right thing.

This attempted censorship of history and the destruction of statues is wholly out of order. People need to take a good long look at themselves; shame on them.

I don't think it is censorship, because no-one is saying we should forget this era of history. In fact, recent events have highlighted a shameful past, not hidden it. These statues belong in museums where they can be seen in their historical context. Perhaps we could have plaques where they used to stand, explaining why they were removed and where they can be found.

I notice no one is rushing to shut down the schools and hospitals endowed by these people.

You won't find any school or hospital currently dependent for their existence on Colston's endowments.

I was interested to discover that Colston constituted his charities to deny their benefits to people who did not share his religious and political views. It's quite gratifying to reflect that he is probably spinning in his grave at the fact that those that are still in existence are now helping lots of people he would have absolutely loathed.

Why is league of Gentlemen except from this cleansing?

for now.

Nothing is exempt from the purity spiral.

I notice no one is rushing to shut down the schools and hospitals endowed by these people.

It's OK, they have another pretext for shutting schools.

Maybe I spoke too soon - I think for now hospitals are exempt because they can deal with the great and only threat (other than racism).

Oh grow up fgs!

@DysonFury

I'd never live there after them closing their Waitrose.

👌🏻

It isn't a statue it's a 2 sided carved head.

One side smiles the other side is sad.

Not an indication of black people being 2 faced but an example of town signs

Pleased to be here
Sorry to be leaving

The racism aspect is never going to be agreed on. It was intended as a token of respect. But the story behind the boy being there at all is one of it's time, slaves, indentured servants and people being 'freed'

But I'd be very wary of removing all trace of a places or societies roots.