Removing statues is it right or wrong

Apologies for not reading entire thread.

I would think that James Cook will be high on the hit-list. Worldwide, a lot of place names to erase. Even a nation.
 
It's a very complex subject. I think on balance it's right that statues like to Colston are removed. But it should be done properly, not torn down by a mob and thrown in the harbour. Those people yesterday in Bristol were betraying the cause for which they were protesting. It seems to me that these demonstrations are organised by a few well meaning people, then a mob turns up. I can't rid my self of the notion that a lot of these people are just there specifically so they can smash up statues and windows and daub paint in the name of whatever cause they are protesting about. You can't take the moral high ground if you start smashing things up.

As someone said above, statues of controversial people like Colston should be displayed in museums, with an objective appraisal of what they did, and didn't do. But that begs a need for history to be reported accurately, not the pick and mix airbrush version that British schoolkids hear about.
 
Just as a little aside I’d like to thank everybody for a really constructive debate on this tender subject . Been both informative and thought provoking so well done all.
 
Soutra said:
It's a very complex subject. I think on balance it's right that statues like to Colston are removed. But it should be done properly, not torn down by a mob and thrown in the harbour. Those people yesterday in Bristol were betraying the cause for which they were protesting. It seems to me that these demonstrations are organised by a few well meaning people, then a mob turns up. I can't rid my self of the notion that a lot of these people are just there specifically so they can smash up statues and windows and daub paint in the name of whatever cause they are protesting about. You can't take the moral high ground if you start smashing things up.

As someone said above, statues of controversial people like Colston should be displayed in museums, with an objective appraisal of what they did, and didn't do. But that begs a need for history to be reported accurately, not the pick and mix airbrush version that British schoolkids hear about.
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Well why haven't they been removed?
 
Sadly genuine movements for essential change are created quickly under slogans with no clear leadership and strategy. As a result their incredibly important cause is hijacked by people with different agendas or less genuine commitment to their aims. As a result people arbitrarily decide what the right tactics are almost on the hoof, tearing down statues, defacing monuments etc. The real people black lives matters must engage - the middle aged white folk who are blissfully ignorant see the images of vandalism and public order offences and the opposite effect happens. All they hear is the white politicians and police condemning actions contrary to the law of the land. These acts have immediate short term satisfaction for those involved but detrimental impact to their cause. Who’s statue it monument is next? I see mouthpieces Jones is calling for Rhodes statue in Oxford to be torn down, no doubt it will and the chasm of understanding and collective response for delivering reach change will widen even further. In short whilst understandable tearing down statues is a bad idea.
 
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The statue of a slave trader responsible for the deaths of 25000+ should've been removed by the council long ago.

If we had something similar in our area, I'd like it replaced by a statue of someone who represents us all, someone we're all proud of.
 
uncle_rico said:
The UK is one of the most tolerant countries in the world, and some of this mindless violence, which has hijacked the real cause, will set us back years. It’s very sad.
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This propaganda does no good. People are out there demonstrating because what is happening is not good enough. We could, and should, be doing much better than we are with regards to equality of all kinds.
 
Historian Ben Roberts gave a talk about this a year or too ago, Borobarmy, how statues locally were a very Victorian thing. In early 20th century you tended to remember people in other ways, perhaps turning them to stone and putting them on plinths was seen as well... pompous and Victorian perhaps. It was the tarnished by those guys on plinths that were Lords (not ladies), turning them to stone was confirming them as being the great and the good. Whether they were or were not.
Then after a long gap in time we got our footballer statues, by popular consent and finally more recently still, the war heroes, the VCs, outside the Dorman Museum and the cenotaph.
The words of Ali Brownlee are surely a very fitting tribute to a man that inspired with his voice and put our thoughts and emotions into words.
 
Robert Nichols said:
Historian Ben Roberts gave a talk about this a year or too ago, Borobarmy, how statues locally were a very Victorian thing. In early 20th century you tended to remember people in other ways, perhaps turning them to stone and putting them on plinths was seen as well... pompous and Victorian perhaps. It was the tarnished by those guys on plinths that were Lords (not ladies), turning them to stone was confirming them as being the great and the good. Whether they were or were not.
Then after a long gap in time we got our footballer statues, by popular consent and finally more recently still, the war heroes, the VCs, outside the Dorman Museum and the cenotaph.
The words of Ali Brownlee are surely a very fitting tribute to a man that inspired with his voice and put our thoughts and emotions into words.
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Interesting stuff Rob . Cheers
 
Mendieta420 said:
The statue of a slave trader responsible for the deaths of 25000+ should've been removed by the council long ago.

If we had something similar in our area, I'd like it replaced by a statue of someone who represents us all, someone we're all proud of.
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Often, some or most of the money these slavers generated was used for philanthropic purposes. Building of hospitals, homes and other relief of misery for people in (say) Bristol did help to alleviate poverty. It's impossible to know how many people here benefited indirectly from slavers, but it's a very complex issue with many shades of grey. I am not condoning what happened but the building of statues is both understandable and unjustifiable.
 
While we've got to be careful of encouraging anarchy I think we have to recognise that the world is changing. Young people are far more engaged in politics than previous generations where and I don't think they are going to put up with the **** that many of us did in previous decades.
 
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