A red badge of shame for past monuments?
THE removal of one’s freedom and liberty is probably the most inhumane action against a fellow human. Slavery in all its forms is grotesque and should be opposed always.
Slavery has occurred from the earliest of times, for example in the building of the pyramids. When lands were conquered, invaders would take a quota of the vanquished as slaves. The slaves were of all colours, creeds and religions. This was true of the Romans who we admire so much for changing the world.
Today, criminals enslave young women by deceiving them, vulnerable men have been bullied into working for unscrupulous people and living in squalor, fearing for their safety should they consider escaping.
The current issue of removal of statues or memorials of people who may have been involved in slavery or imperialism in the past, unfortunately, has not been the result of considered debate or discussion.
Instead it has been a reaction to the present climate, not exclusively but including the Covid-19 pandemic, the inequality in society and the widespread media coverage of the death of George Floyd in America.
All these conditions, together with the prospect of huge unemployment and lack of the chance of a bright future may have contributed to people participating in some protests; unfortunately these are some of the precise conditions for civil unrest, some would say.
Probably few protesters carried out any significant research into the people behind the statues. This was highlighted by the fact that one placard held at the Cecil Rhodes protest had his name misspelt. Rhodes, it seems, comes under the imperialist category – therefore should we include statues and memorials to Queen Victoria, who oversaw a huge imperialist campaign around the world? Should we take the pharaohs, including Tutankhamun, from view, remove all Roman emperor statues, Edward I, who invaded Wales and carried out atrocities in his campaign? We cannot draw a line in history by saying “this may be too long ago”. Now will be too long ago one day.
Should we have due consideration, taking all aspects including those I have touched on? Do we need a body of people to consider all historic aspects of someone’s life and then decide what steps should be taken? If we remove these statues, we will also remove the knowledge from future generations, including the knowledge that he or she dealt with slaves or imperialism, which we would want future generations to know and condemn.
Should we consider a marker to put on these commemorations to highlight the despicable deeds, a red plaque attached, make it internationally recognised? When future generations come along and ask “why has that particular statue got a red plaque and not the others?”, they will be informed.