How dare they change the Colston name?

TO say that I am upset by the change of Colston’s Girls’ School name is very much an understatement.

That school was my life for 12 years between 1938 and 1950.

Yes, I know it is a long time ago, but we received an excellent education with dedicated teachers and discipline.

One thing we were never told about was Colston’s involvement with the slave trade, which of course is where his wealth was made.

There were many other traders in Bristol whose wealth came about in the same way. Frys and Wills to mention two. The Society of Merchant Venturers were very revered in Bristol and they did an extremely good job of administering the monies left by Colston to the charities he set up.

The girls’ school gets lots of mention on this subject, but Colston primarily left his money for a Boys’ School and it was only when that had been paid for that with the monies left over they decided to build a Girls’ School. Are the boys going to change their name also?

The younger people of today are not really interested in past history and how Bristol became the city and county that it is.

I am very proud to be a Bristolian although I have not lived in the city for over 60 years.

I am also proud to be an old Colston girl, and so are friends of mine with whom I was with at that time. Indeed, many of us celebrated Colston’s School Centenary Service in the Cathedral in 1991.

What these hooligans do not understand is that slavery in the 18th and 19th centuries was normal.

Yes, some were treated very badly, but others were treated well and this goes for the world today.

Some workers, whether white or black, have awful lives in factories, and let us not forget the sweat shops not only here in this country, but in India, China and Africa.

Think back to Biblical times and how they treated Jesus. To me, personally, I treat all colours and religions with respect, something sadly lacking in today’s world.

To me, those people who tore down the statue on 7th June are worse than those that transported the slaves here.

How many of those folk were descendents of the original slaves? How many were actually black? To my mind most of them were there for fun and to rabble rouse, with no respect for the pandemic state we were and still are in.

To wipe out every trace of Colston’s name is a disgrace and as for the Colston Hall’s new name, to spend three years and money on coming up with something resembling a free newspaper, is also a disgrace. As other correspondents before have said, it will always be the Colston Hall, although with its very modern look now, it could be a bit more imaginative.

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