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June 10, 2020

Protesters Topple Monuments to Slave Traders, Racists and Mass Murderers
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Protests against racism and police brutality continue to rock cities and
towns across the U.S. and around the world. In Richmond, Virginia,
protesters toppled a statue of Christopher Columbus on Tuesday evening;
they set it on fire before throwing it in a nearby lake. In Antwerp,
Belgium, city officials removed a statue of King Leopold II on Tuesday,
just days after protesters set it on fire. From 1885 to 1908, Leopold
declared himself absolute ruler of Congo, leading a campaign of torture
and genocide that killed an estimated 10 million people. In England,
authorities have removed a statue of 18th century Scottish lord Robert
Milligan from outside the Museum of London Docklands, after protesters
covered it in a tarp and a Black Lives Matter sign. Milligan enslaved
over 500 people on his family's sugar plantations in Jamaica. The
statue's removal was welcomed by city councilor Amina Ali.

Amina Ali: "It's a victory. And, you know, for the ancestors and the
people whose lives have been affected by slavery, this is a victory
today. So, it's very symbolic. And I'm glad it's happened in my
lifetime."



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