Today, the statue of a Black Lives Matter protester that was placed on the plinth where a statue of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston once stood was removed by the local council. <a href="http://vt.co/news/protesters-topple-statue-of-17th-century-trader">Last month</a>, a group of BLM protesters in Bristol, England, successfully toppled a statue of Colston that stood in the city, before dumping it in the nearby harbor. You can watch the dramatic moment the statue was toppled here:  [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/SkyNews/status/1269643128409112578]] And yesterday morning (July 15), another statue had appeared on the plinth where Colston's once stood, this time depicting a woman named Jen Reid - who was photographed standing atop the plinth with her fist raised after the Colston statue had been toppled. The statue was created and erected by London-based artist Marc Quinn, who said it "is an embodiment and amplification of Jen's ideas and experiences, and of the past, present and her hope for a better future." However, due to the fact that the statue was erected without permission from the local city council, today it has been removed. A statement from Bristol City Council posted to their official Twitter account read: <blockquote>"This morning we removed the sculpture. It will be held at our museum for the artist to collect or donate to our collection. Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees issued a statement yesterday about the need for a democratic process where the people of Bristol decide the future of the plinth."</blockquote> The removal comes after Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees announced that it would be up to the city's locals to decide what should stand on the plinth where Colston once loomed. <img class=" wp-image-12603760" src="https://img.vt.co/2020/07/d8c1dc79-pa-54602523.jpg" alt="" width="416" height="625" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: PA Images]] Rees said in a <a href="https://news.bristol.gov.uk/news/statement-from-mayor-of-bristol">statement</a>: <blockquote>"The future of the plinth and what is installed on it must be decided by the people of Bristol. "This will be critical to building a city that is home to those who are elated at the statue being pulled down, those who sympathise with its removal but are dismayed at how it happened and those who feel that in its removal, they’ve lost a piece of the Bristol they know and therefore themselves. "We need change. In leading that change we have to find a pace that brings people with us. There is an African proverb that says if you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together. Our challenge is to take the city far."</blockquote> Rees also said in a <a href="https://twitter.com/MarvinJRees/status/1283392832569475074">tweet</a> that anything else erected on the plinth without permission would be removed. [[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/MarvinJRees/status/1283392832569475074]] As the city debates on what (or who) should permanently stand on the plinth, there have already been several Change.org petitions (<a href="https://www.change.org/p/bristol-council-petition-bristol-council-to-leave-jen-reid-replacement-statue-in-place?source_location=topic_page">HERE</a> and <a href="https://www.change.org/p/bristol-council-make-the-marc-quinn-statue-of-jen-reid-a-permanent-fixture-in-bristol?recruiter=793956082">HERE</a>) created to have the statue of Reid - which is officially titled A Surge of Power (Jen Reid) 2020 - become a permanent fixture of the city.

Statue of BLM protester that replaced that of slave trader is removed by council

Top Stories

News

Groom reveals he and bride have to move away after horror fire at their wedding killed 100 guests

News

Final words of Florida man who was executed nearly three decades after killing two women revealed

News

Horrifying moment blaze which killed 100 guests at wedding took hold caught on camera

News

Scientists predict the exact date asteroid could hit Earth 'with force of 22 atomic bombs'

News

Man believes his hidden camera captured the moment his wife tried to kill him

News

Texas grandfather accidentally shoots grandson, 12, while trying to get attention at wedding