A video has been trending over social media showing protesters in Bristol, UK removing a controversial statue amid the Black Lives Matter protests, which was triggered by the death of George Floyd last month and has now spread across the globe.
The moment a statue of slave trader Edward Colston toppled into Bristol’s harbour. ‘It’s what he deserves. I’ve been waiting all my life for this moment’ someone told me in the moments after. pic.twitter.com/6juqVrsJ6V — Sarah Turnnidge (@sarah_turnnidge) June 7, 2020
[VIRAL] Video of protestors removing slave trader's statue draws powerful reactions on Twitter
The statue is of Edward Colston who was part of the England-based Royal African Company. He made a huge fortune from trading cloth, wine, sugar, and slaves. His company transported over 100,000 slaves from West Africa to the Caribbean between 1672 and 1689. During the transport, over 20,000 died because of unhygienic conditions on the cramped ships. Their bodies were thrown out to sea.
The protestors in Bristol brought down Colston's statue using ropes. Once the statue was on the ground, a protester was pictured with his knee on the figure's neck--reminiscent of Floyd being restrained by a Minnesota police officer. Then, they used ropes to drag the bronze statue and threw it into the harbor which was the entry point for the transatlantic slave trade for over a century.
Protesters tear down a statue of Edward Colston during a protest against racial inequality in Bristol, Britain June 7, 2020 in this screengrab obtained from a social media video.
According to BBC, Home Secretary Priti Patel said the protesters' action was "utterly disgraceful" and the acts of public disorder "have become a distraction from the cause people are protesting about." She also said that it is right for the police to follow up and make sure that "justice is undertaken" with those who are "responsible for such disorderly and lawless behavior."
The police confirmed in a statement that they would have the "act of criminal damage" investigated. Meanwhile, Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees said in a statement the statue's removal would divide opinion but it was "important to listen to those who found the statue to represent an affront to humanity."
Petitions to remove Colston's statue
In 1721, Colston bequeathed his wealth to charities during his death. And his contributions can be seen along Bristol's streets, memorials, and buildings.
Historian Prof David Olusoga told BBC that the statue's removal is long delayed. "Statues are about saying 'This was a great man who did great things,'" said Olusoga adding that is not true for Colston who "was a slave trader and a murderer."
People have been trying to remove the statue since 2018 when a petition calling for its removal was launched. As of this writing, over 11,000 people signed the petition asking for the statue to be removed.
Also, on-going petitions are seeking to further remove Colston's name from Bristol and to replace the statue with black civil rights activist Paul Stephenson or a memorial for slave trade victims.
Twitter has some powerful reactions
Meanwhile, the statue's destruction has sparked controversy. Users on Twitter have reacted strongly.
Twitter user Prof. Kate Williams said she hopes a commemoration of the suffering on the ships of horror and death that made him rich would replace it. She then added a picture of a 2018 unofficial artwork.
The statue of #EdwardColston, slave trader, pulled down just now. Let's hope in its place we see a commemoration. such as this unofficial artwork added in 2018, of the suffering in the ships of horror and death that made him rich. pic.twitter.com/t6VfZ8cigv — Prof Kate Williams (@KateWilliamsme) June 7, 2020
Reacting to the video, Nish Kumar said people "why was there a statue of a slave trader there in the first place."
I guess the question we should probably be asking is "why was there a statue of a slave trader there in the first place" — Nish Kumar (@MrNishKumar) June 7, 2020
Another user Kome said, "Shakespeare couldn't write such poetic justice" as he reacted to another video of the statue being thrown from the harbor.
A slave trader's statue thrown from the docks? Shakespeare couldn't write such poetic justice. https://t.co/Ztfe0DHPn3 — Kome (@KahunaKome) June 7, 2020
Similarly, Michael Siva made an irony of how the statue was thrown out.
Considering that slave traders like Edward Colston used to throw sickly African slaves overboard, and then claim on the insurance, I would say this is a fitting end:https://t.co/WNBKiEnsoV — Michael Siva (@michaelsiva63) June 7, 2020
Meanwhile, Abe Brown shared that "Google Maps has already updated the statue's geolocation" showing the statue of Edward Colston as closed.
Protestors in Bristol, England have torn down a statue of a slave trader and thrown it in the harbor. Google Maps has already updated the statue’s geolocation. https://t.co/4UnK3u2p9c pic.twitter.com/yGu5D9eSc2 — Abe Brown (@abebrown716) June 7, 2020
