First one statue fell, and now others look set to follow like dominos.
Before Black Lives Matter protesters toppled a bronze effigy of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol on Sunday, few would have predicted that the week would end with campaigners drawing up a list of statues targeted to suffer a similar fate.
Councils across the country are also pledging to review controversial monuments in their areas, with London Mayor Sadiq Khan launching a Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm.
Over in the US, the BLM movement has a new rallying cry: “defund the police.” The growing calls to rethink or even abolish the policing system follows attacks on peaceful protesters by law enforcers across the country – tactics that are thrown into harsh relief when compared with the actions of UK police at similar demonstrations.
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Bestselling children’s author J.K. Rowling is in hot water after tweeting a series of messages labelled “transphobic” by critics. And the row took a further twist when Rowling defended her comments in an essay in which she also reveals herself to be a victim of sexual and domestic assault.
Meanwhile, Brexit talks between Britain and the EU hit the skids over much disputed fishing regulations. The UK government is facing further hostility at home too, after an ex-adviser suggested that locking down a week earlier would have significantly reduced the country’s coronavirus death toll.
In other international dust-ups, the EU accused Russia and China of spreading coronavirus disinformation, while Moscow warned the US against including Beijing in upcoming nuclear disarmament talks.
Despite the various rows, there has been some cause for celebration. Prince Philip marked his 99th birthday while shielding with the Queen in Windsor Castle.
And the rest of the country may soon have reason to raise a toast as well, with pubs set to reopen later this month under a new government plan to “save the summer”.
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