Bleeding Edge

In the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police, protests and demonstrations have been an almost daily occurrence in many cities across the world.

The most recent demonstration in London involved clashes between protesters, police, and those believed to be far-right counter-protesters.

However, an image captured among the protests – of a Black Lives Matter supporter carrying a suspected far-right protester to safety over his shoulder – has been shared far and wide, showing violence and division is never the answer.

As the image shows, the white, suspected far-right man is clutching his head after receiving an injury. Carried by a black Black Lives Matter demonstrator and flanked by police, the white man is carried to safety away from the crowds.

The protest was taking place outside Royal Festival Hall in central London. The white man was badly beaten, Metro reports, before other protesters stepped in to protect him.

Throughout the day, there had been clashes between far-right activists and anti-racism groups.

Groups of far-right activists, many organised by Britain First, had gathered at Parliament Square in a bid to ‘defend’ memorials after the statue of Winston Churchill was defaced, and the statue of Edward Colston, a 17th century slave trader, was torn down in Bristol.

Anticipating clashes with far-right groups, Black Lives Matter cancelled a protest that was planned for Saturday, June 13. London Mayor Sadiq Khan urged people to stay away from the city, as the risk of violence increased due to demonstrations being usurped by counter-protesters. However, peaceful protesters holding placards still gathered at Trafalgar Square.

Black Lives Matter Protester Carries Injured Counter-Protester To SafetyPA Images
Clashes between BLM protesters and far-right groups occurred later than day, and more than 100 people were arrested, with offences including violent disorder, assaulting police officers, possession of an offensive weapon, possession of class A drugs, being drunk and disorderly and breaching the peace.

Prime minister Boris Johnson has condemned the far-right counter-protests as ‘racist thuggery’, and warned those being violent and aggressive will be dealt with by police.

According to Met Police, six officers received ‘minor injuries’ after ‘pockets of violence’ broke out in London, with far-right groups attacking police and journalists with smoke bombs and projectiles, Metro reports.

A prominent statue of Winston Churchill in London has been covered up over fears it could be vandalized, as it and other monuments in the U.K. have become a rallying point for anti-racism demonstrators.

Authorities fully encased the statue of Britain’s wartime leader in the city’s Parliament Square less than a week after it was defaced during a protest against the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

The total shrouding of the Churchill statue quickly drew rebuke from U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who called it “absurd and shameful that this national monument should today be at risk of attack by violent protestors.”

“The statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square is a permanent reminder of his achievement in saving this country – and the whole of Europe – from a fascist and racist tyranny,” Johnson tweeted on Friday.

The city also plans to protect central London’s Cenotaph War Memorial and a statue of Nelson Mandela.

A Black Lives Matter protest that had been planned for Saturday was canceled, as The Guardian reported, over safety concerns because of far-right counterdemonstrations planned for the same time.

The counter-protest organizers say they’re holding a “defend our memorials” event, the newspaper reported.

On Friday, hundreds of people gathered in central London for a separate anti-racism demonstration, Reuters reported.

Last weekend, protesters spray-painted “was a racist” on the Churchill statue’s plinth.

Much like in the U.S., anti-racism protests reignited debate in the U.K. over monuments linked to racist practices throughout the country’s history. Activists are calling for the removal of monuments to figures tied to the British slave trade and imperialism. In some cases, protesters have taken matters into their own hands.

In Bristol this week, protesters toppled a statue of Edward Colston, a British slave trader. There are also growing calls to remove a statue of noted imperialist Cecil Rhodes — namesake of the Rhodes Scholarship — from the Oxford University campus.

Yours,

Dr Churchill

PS:

Some fifty five years after my grandfather died and was put in the box — he is now placed inside a box once again…

That must be a first for anyone, and here is where Churchil excels…

Still, the record of Churchill, whose stewardship of the country during World War II is widely valorized, has long been controversial. He has faced particular scrutiny over statements and decisions he made regarding Britain’s colonial endeavors and over his views about race and religion.

For example, Winston Churchill often spoke in jest and one such time, he said that he did not think Native Americans or Aboriginal Australians had been mistreated and stated that “a stronger race, a higher-grade race, a more worldly wise race to put it that way, has come in and taken their place.”

Now that is a pretty Darwinian attitude for the old bulldog, but there you have it.

Not bad Winnie — not bad.

You managed to offend a whole new generation of easily offended folks…

And thus your memory lives on … !