Met Police guarded the Winston Churchill statue from crowds of Black Lives Matters protesters who gathered this afternoon for George Floyd’s funeral – as police officers in Henley-on-Thames ‘take a knee’ during a demonstration.
Around 200 protesters had gathered by the statue to Nelson Mandela on Parliament Square as Mr Floyd, an African-American who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nine minutes, was laid to rest in Houston, Texas.
But after Mr Churchill’s statue was defaced with the word ‘racist’ at the weekend, police guarded the monument as tensions simmered between Black Lives Matters activists and another group trying to protect it from further damage or graffiti.
The event was largely peaceful this afternoon, but the flashpoint between protesters is a worrying prelude for demonstrations planned for this weekend in the capital that are expected to be far larger.
It comes as Black Lives Matters supporters have 60 UK statues they want removed for ‘celebrating slavery and racism’ as councils and museums rushed to remove their controversial monuments after Edward Colston’s was torn down in Bristol.
This afternoon activists held up placards saying ‘I can’t breathe’, ‘Black Lives Matter’ and others demanding equality. The crowd, significantly smaller than protests at the weekend, took a knee and raised their fists in tribute to him during a minute’s silence.
At 5pm the crowd in London moved on to the gates of Downing Street passing a handful of Londoners who had formed a protective ring around the statue of Sir Winston Churchill to stop it being vandalised, as it had been during Sunday’s protest.
Another protest kicked off in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, where officers were seen joining around 200 protesters in ‘take a knee’ with placards reading ‘black lives matter’ and ‘government silence is compliance’. And activists have gathered at Oxford University’s Oriel College demanding remove the statue of imperialist Cecil Rhodes, which has been at the centre of a long-running row.
Black Lives Matters activists and another group clashed this afternoon close to the Winston Churchill statue, just days after it was vandalised
A group of men clash with police defending the statue of Churchill this afternoon as Black Lives Matters protesters paid tribute to George Floyd whose funeral in taking place in Houston, US
A man holds a cross with an England flag on top of it as police guard the statue of Winston Churchill this afternoon
Met Police created a circle of protection for the statue of Winston Churchill this afternoon as BLM activists and another group clashed
Demonstrators during a Black Lives Matter protest in Parliament Square, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis
Demonstrators ‘take the knee’ during a minute’s silence at a Stand up to Racism protest in front of a statue of Nelson Mandela in Parliament Square this afternoon
Faded graffiti calling Churchill a racist was still just about visible as the men kept watch under the eyes of the Metropolitan Police, with man clutching a large cross with an England flag attached to the top.
Outside Downing Street, the small crowd continued to chant ‘Black Lives Matter’ and hold aloft placards calling for racial equality.
The imposing security gates guarding the official residence of the Prime Minister have become a focal point for protester’s anger over the last week.
However, unlike previous protests, which have exploded into violence and seen officers attacked with bottles and other missiles, tonight’s gathering was peaceful with no outbreaks of disorder.
There was only one brief flare-up when some of the group protecting the Churchill statue back on Parliament Square reacted angrily to a man they accused of spitting on the floor close by. Police quickly moved in and calmed tempers.
Demonstrators outside Downing Street in London, as the funeral of George Floyd takes place in the US following his death on May 25 while in police custody in the US city of Minneapolis
A masked protester holds up a placard this afternoon saying ‘It’s 2020…Why are we still asking 4 equality’ as they walk to Downing Street
Around 200 demonstrators gathered outside the gates at Downing Street on Whitehall, central London, this afternoon
Black Lives Matter demonstrators outside Downing Street in London, as the funeral of George Floyd takes place in the US following his death on May 25 while in police custody in the US city of Minneapolis. PA Photo. Picture date: Tuesday June 9, 2020. See PA story POLICE Floyd. Photo credit should read: Victoria Jones/PA Wire
Police in Market Square, Henley on Thames, for Black Lives Matter with a silent kneel to remember those who have lost their lives because of racism
In Oxford hundreds of demonstrators have silently sat down to mark the death of George Floyd at an anti-racism protest in Oxford.
Several hundred people had gathered outside the Oxford college, chanting ‘take it down’ below the statue of imperialist Cecil Rhodes.
The protest has now taken up a large amount of Oxford high street outside of Oriel College, with demonstrators holding up their fists and remaining silent for eight minutes, 46 seconds in memory of Mr Floyd.
A police helicopter is overhead and several police officers are at the demonstration, including two officers on the steps of the college.
It comes Black Lives Matters supporters have 60 UK statues they want removed for ‘celebrating slavery and racism’ as councils and museums rushed to remove their controversial monuments after Edward Colston’s was torn down in Bristol.
Demonstrators are seen beside a statue of Nelson Mandela during a Black Lives Matter protest in Parliament Square today
BLM activists gather outside Downing Street this afternoon ‘Black Lives matter, we want justice and equality’
People gather during a rally at the entrance to Downing Street, London, to commemorate George Floyd as his funeral takes place in the US following his death on May 25 while in police custody in the US city of Minneapolis. PA Photo. Picture date: Tuesday June 9, 2020. See PA story POLICE Floyd. Photo credit should read: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire
Some of Briton’s most famous people are on the hit list including imperialist Cecil Rhodes in Oxford, slave-trading West India Docks founder Robert Milligan at the Museum of London, and the Edinburgh statue of former Home Secretary Henry Dundas who delayed the abolition of slavery as well as a statue of Sir Francis Drake on Plymouth Hoe.
The interactive map, called ‘topple the racists’, was set up by the Stop Trump Coalition in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and lists plaques and monuments in more than 30 towns and cities across the UK. The online list is unregulated and can be added to by the public.
And this afternoon, amid growing pressure to act, the Museum of London has moved to take down the giant bronze figure of plantation and slave owner Robert Milligan outside.