Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Sep 01, 2025

Why the toppled statue of slave trader Edward Colston is going on public display in England

Why the toppled statue of slave trader Edward Colston is going on public display in England

A statue of colonial slave trader Edward Colston has gone on public display in Bristol, England, almost a year after it was toppled during Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the city.

A statue of colonial slave trader Edward Colston has gone on public display in Bristol, England, almost a year after it was toppled during Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the city.

On June 7 last year, demonstrators denouncing historic and systemic racism and oppression defaced the controversial monument with red and blue graffiti.

They used ropes to tear down it down from its plinth before rolling it through the streets and dumping it into the River Avon.

Days later, the bronze statue was recovered from the riverbed by Bristol City Council and put into storage.

The statue is now being displayed at M Shed, Bristol


The statue -- which for many was a symbol of Britain's colonial legacy -- is now displayed at the M Shed museum, alongside placards from the protest and a timeline of events. The figure is lying down on its back, on a specially crafted wooden structure.

According to museum authorities, the new, temporary display is intended to "start a conversation about its (the statue's) future."

The M Shed website reads: "This is an opportunity to have your say about how we move forward together."

Colston, born to a wealthy merchant family in Bristol, rose to prominence through his role in the Royal African Company (RAC) during the Atlantic slave trade. He helped facilitate the transportation of tens of thousands of people from Africa across the Atlantic Ocean, mainly to work the sugar plantations in the Caribbean and Virginia.

The company branded the people it transported as slaves -- including children -- with its RAC initials on their chests. The presence of the statue in Bristol, as well as streets and buildings dedicated to Colston, has long been a source of contention.

After it was pulled down, Colston's effigy -- which had stood in the city since 1895 -- was briefly replaced with a life-sized sculpture created by British artist Marc Quinn. His statue depicted a black woman with her fist raised in a Black Power salute.

At the time, Quinn said in a press statement that he was "committed to reflecting what I see, including inequalities and injustices. Prejudice, such as racism, is part of that.

"Keeping the issue of Black people's lives and experiences in the public eye and doing whatever I can to help is so important."

As the artist did not receive permission from authorities to erect the statue, it was removed by Bristol City Council the following day.

The presence of the statue in the city has for years been a source of contention


The question of how to deal with historical monuments depicting colonial figures such as slave traders has been a subject of debate in many countries in recent years, with calls for their removal intensifying amid global protests over the death of George Floyd last year.

In the US, a string of Confederate statues have been removed by authorities because of links to the slave trade.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×