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Statue Of Slave Owner Robert Milligan Removed From West India Quay

Statue Of Slave Owner Robert Milligan Removed From West India Quay

The controversial monument has been pulled down following protests

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers

A statue of slave owner Robert Milligan has been removed from West India Quay in London following protests.

In a video shared online by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the controversial sculpture can be seen being torn from its plinth outside the Museum of London Docklands today (9 June).

In his post, Mr Khan said it was a 'sad truth' that the UK has benefited a great deal from the slave trade and that this particular aspect of the nation's past should not be celebrated.

He wrote: "The statue of slave trader Robert Milligan has now been removed from West India Quay.

"It's a sad truth that much of our wealth was derived from the slave trade - but this does not have to be celebrated in our public spaces."

At the time of his death in 1809, Milligan is said to have owned two sugar plantations and 526 slaves in Jamaica. The statue has stood outside the museum since 1997, having previously been moved twice.

Its removal comes shortly after it was covered with a blanket and a Black Lives Matter placard by protesters who demanded it be torn down.

PA

Responding to the calls for it to be removed, a spokesperson for the Museum of London Docklands said the placards would remain until it was taken away.

They said: "Now more than ever at a time when Black Lives Matter is calling for an end to public monuments honouring slave owners, we advocate for the statue of Robert Milligan to be removed on the grounds of its historical links to colonial violence and exploitation.

"We are currently working with a consortium to remove this statue and are aware of other legacies and landmarks within the area. The statue presently stands shrouded with placards and is now an object of protest, we believe these protests should remain as long as the statue remains."

PA

This is not the first controversial statue to come under some public scrutiny in recent days.

In Bristol over the weekend, the statue of 17th Century slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down and thrown into the harbour.

Activists have been gathering in Bristol, as in many other cities in the world, to protest against the death of George Floyd while he was in police custody in Minneapolis.

The statue has been a controversial topic in Bristol for some time, with many people believing that it should be removed. That debate, it would seem, is now over.

It has since sparked fresh debate around Britain's relationship with it colonial past, with other councils being urged to look at statues in their towns and cities.

Featured Image Credit: PA