What a Slave Trader's Statue Says About Britain
The killing of George Floyd has been a call to action in the U.K. too. People are right to be angry.
Kick over the statues.
Photographer: Ben Birchall - PA Images/PA ImagesIf Britons wanted a reason to protest against institutional racism, or police brutality, they didn’t have to look 4,000 miles away. There have been plenty of local examples over the years. “I can’t breathe” will have resonated with many black families here.
That’s why the killing of George Floyd has been a call to action in the U.K. too. An estimated 137,500 people have attended more than 200 protests in recent days. One produced an iconic picture of global outrage: The toppling in Bristol of the statue of Edward Colston, a 17th century slave trader. Protesters dragged the bronze bulk through the streets and dumped it in Bristol Harbor.