"Figure Who Sold 80,000 Black People as Slaves"... UK Protesters Throw 17th Century Slave Trader Statue into River

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] As rallies commemorating George Floyd, a Black man who died due to excessive police force in the United States, took place worldwide, protesters in Bristol, once a center of the British slave trade, pulled down a statue of a 17th-century slave trader and threw it into the sea.

On the 7th (local time), according to BBC and others, thousands of citizens gathered in downtown Bristol, southwest England, to commemorate Floyd and protest against racial discrimination. Some protesters moved to Colston Street, named after Edward Colston, a 17th-century slave trader, tied ropes around the statue there, and pulled down Colston's statue.

The protesters laid the statue on the ground and trampled it, and some even mimicked kneeling on the statue's neck with one knee, as Floyd was restrained by the police when he died. They dragged the statue through the city and took it to the harbor, where they threw it into the River Avon.

Colston was an executive of the 'Royal African Company' in 17th-century Bristol and is known to have sold about 80,000 Black men, women, and children from Africa as slaves to the Americas. Before his death in 1721, Colston donated his wealth to charities, and as a result, many streets and buildings in Bristol bear his name.

However, the statue of Colston, erected in 1895, has been a subject of ongoing controversy among Bristol's local government and civil society regarding whether it should remain. Historian Professor David Olusoga told BBC in an interview that Bristol City should have removed Colston's statue long ago, saying, "A statue is like saying 'this person was a great person who did great things,' but Colston was a slave trader and a murderer."

The British police announced they would investigate the destruction of the Colston statue. While the anti-racism protests across the UK held to commemorate Floyd were generally peaceful, some turned violent, and police officers were attacked. One officer sustained a head injury.

In response, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted that the events were "overrun by thuggery" and vowed to hold those responsible accountable. He stated, "People have the right to protest peacefully and observe social distancing, but they do not have the right to attack the police," adding, "This is a betrayal of the cause they claim to serve." Earlier, on the 3rd, Prime Minister Johnson had described Floyd's death as "shocking and unacceptable."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.