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Massive Attack have welcomed the removal of a statue of Edward Colston by anti-racism protesters in Bristol, saying that it “should never have been a public monument”.
Demonstrators who were marching in Bristol on Sunday (June 7) as part of the ongoing protests worldwide following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis made global headlines after a group of protesters pulled down the statue of Colston, a 17th century slave trader, and threw it into the harbour.
Massive Attack, who hail from Bristol, tweeted their support for the protesters’ actions on Sunday, writing: “Finally. The Colston statue should never have been a public monument. Its history could have been understood in a museum.”
Finally.
The Colston statue should never have been a public monument. It’s history could have been understood in a museum. #colston https://t.co/PbyhF3Kgls
— Massive Attack (@MassiveAttackUK) June 7, 2020
“The elevation of a slave trader clashed badly with our civic identity,” the band added in a second tweet alongside a picture of a protestor kneeling on the neck of Colston’s statue. “A philanthropy derived from crimes against humanity is as hollow as the statue itself.”
The elevation of a slave trader clashed badly with our civic identity.
A philanthropy derived from crimes against humanity is as hollow as the statue itself. #Colston pic.twitter.com/y3W4NON4Tp
— Massive Attack (@MassiveAttackUK) June 7, 2020
Following the toppling of the Colston statue, Bristol venue the Colston Hall issued a statement yesterday (June 8) reaffirming their previous commitment to changing its name.
After initially announcing their intention to change the Colston name back in 2017, the Colston Hall said that they now plan “to announce a new name that is right for both the Hall and the city in autumn 2020.”
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