Maebh Springbett
During a Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol on 7 June 2020 a group of four individuals, Sage Willoughby, Jake Skuse, Milo Ponsford and Rhian Graham, tore down the statue of Edward Colston. Protestors later threw the statue into Bristol harbour. Now, the group responsible, dubbed the ‘Colston Four’, have been cleared of all charges after facing trial for criminal damage.
The protest in question was not singular but part of a global movement. Following the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in May 2020, the Black Lives Matter movement has gained a great deal of momentum. This has since instigated numerous protests against racial discrimination and violence and police brutality. Activists also highlight the importance of educating people on the truth of the slave trade and its perpetrators which has so often been glossed over in history lessons.
Edward Colston
One such perpetrator was the Bristol-born slave trader Edward Colston. Colston was both a shareholder and deputy governor of the Royal African Company, one of the most prestigious slave trading companies in the Atlantic. As a result, his wealth was drawn from the enslavement of around 84,000 men, women and children. He was also complicit in the deaths of at least 19,000 who perished aboard slave ships. The bronze statue commemorating his contributions to the city of Bristol was erected in 1895 in a public park, ‘The Centre’, and was later designated a Grade II listed structure in 1977.
“The group ‘were on the right side of history.”
The defence described Colston’s statue, which has stood for 125 years in a city that is now home to a large black population, as an ‘indecent display’ and argued that the group ‘were on the right side of history.’ One lawyer for the defence Blinne Ni Ghralaigh stated that ‘In this case, they determined that a conviction for the removal of this statue – that glorified a slave trader involved in the enslavement of over 84,000 black men, women and children as a ‘most virtuous and wise’ man – would not be proportionate.’
‘If you’ve broken the law and committed criminal damage you should be punished.’
Others have not responded so positively to the verdict, however. Conservative MP Tom Hunt told the Telegraph: ‘If you’ve broken the law and committed criminal damage you should be punished. If the jury is a barrier to ensuring they are punished then that needs to be addressed.’ Following the acquittal of the four the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) bill has been put to Parliament which, in the words of Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, is intended to close a “potential loophole” limiting the prosecution of people who damage memorials.
Despite differing reactions to the verdict of the ‘Colston Four’, some may consider the dumping of Edward Colston’s effigy into the harbour a fitting end for a renowned slave trader.
Image courtesy of James Eades on Unsplash. See image license here. No changes or alterations have been made to this image.
Maebh Springbett
While Head of Entertainment for Empoword Journalism, Maebh works in the Careers department at the University of Reading. Their writing focuses on music and has been published by the likes of Music Is To Blame and Dead Good Music. They aspire to work in non-fiction publishing.