Saturday, July 11, 2020



CHEEKY BUGGERS

Jimmy Savile mannequin replaces Edward Colston statue torn down by protesters

A bronze statue of Edward Colston was removed from its plinth and thrown in Bristol's harbour last month. A mannequin dressed like notorious paedophile has since been put in its place

By
Emma Grimshaw
Tom Towers Senior News Reporter
22:47, 11 JUL 2020
A mannequin dressed like notorious paedophile Jimmy Savile appeared on the plinth in Bristol today (Image: bristol live)

The statue of a slavetrader that was torn down last month has been replaced with a mannequin of Jimmy Savile.

Black Lives Matter protesters used ropes to pull down a bronze statue of Edward Colton in Bristol and chucked it in the city’s harbour on June 7.

The Tory MP – who died in 1721 – was a member of the Royal African Company – which transported approximately 100,000 people from Africa to The Americas.

More than 20,000 are thought to have died during the crossing.

Today, a mannequin dressed like notorious paedophile Savile appeared on the plinth, Bristol Live reports.

Black Lives Matter protesters used ropes to pull down a bronze statue of Edward Colton (Image: Tom Wren / SWNS)
The Tory MP transported approximately 100,000 people from Africa to The Americas (Image: PA)

The Top of the Pops and Jim'll Fix It presenter was awarded an OBE and was never held accountable for his crimes.

Less than a year after his death in 2011, an ITV documentary was the first to report his sexual abuse against kids.

Police then launched an investigation identifying 300 victims who were assaulted over six decades.

On July 11, the council lifted Colston’s statue out of the water and is now preparing it to put on display in a museum.

On his death in 1721, Colston left his wealth to a raft of charities based in Bristol.

After the statue was toppled, a protester was pictured with his knee on Colston’s neck – reminiscent of the George Floyd video that sparked the widespread protests.

The unarmed black man died while being restrained by a Minnesota police officer in the US.

Meanwhile, police have arrested one person for criminal damage and are still hunting for other suspects.

A Change.org petition has now been set up to erect a statue of civil rights campaigner Dr Paul Stephenson where Colston once stood, and has attracted nearly 75,000 signatures.

He led the Bristol bus boycott in the 1960s, leading to a ban on ethnic minorities working on city buses being overturned.

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