Labour leader Keir Starmer ‘takes a knee’ in solidarity with Black Lives Matter protesters as Parliament holds a minute’s silence in memory of George Floyd
- Opposition leader shared a picture with deputy Angela Rayner on social media
- He said: ‘We kneel with all those opposing anti-Black racism’
- Parliament came to a halt at 11am for minute’s silence in memory of George Floyd
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer joined anti-racism protesters by ‘taking a knee’ in Parliament today as Black Lives Matters protests continued.
The opposition leader shared a picture on social media of him kneeling alongside his deputy Angela Rayner this afternoon, saying: ‘We kneel with all those opposing anti-Black racism.’
It came after Parliament came to a halt at 11am for a minute’s silence in memory of George Floyd, whose murder in Minneapolis on May 25 sparked the current furore.
The phrase ‘take a knee’ comes from an American football play and was popularised by the pitch-side anti-racism protests of ex-San Francisco 49rs star Colin Kaepernick.
The Opposition leader shared a picture on social media of him kneeling alongside his deputy Angela Rayner this afternoon, saying: ‘We kneel with all those opposing anti-Black racism’
Black Lives Matter supporters have identified 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.
Some of Briton’s most famous people are on the hit list including imperialist Cecil Rhodes in Oxford (pictured)
Black Lives Matter supporters have identified 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.
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.
Protesters have begun gathering in Parliament Square to commemorate the life of George Floyd.
Mr Floyd died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee on his neck for several minutes as he cried out for his mother.
Mr Floyd’s death at the age of 46 has inspired worldwide demonstrations over racial injustice, including in London.
More mourners are expected to gather in Westminster at 5pm for Mr Floyd’s funeral.