A sculpture of a black woman who took part in a Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol has been erected on the plinth where a statue of slave trader Edward Colston used to stand

: @BenBirchallUK

The bronze memorial to Colston was torn down amid worldwide Black Lives Matter protests triggered by the death of George Floyd.

Mr Floyd died after a white police officer held him down by pressing his knee into his neck for almost nine minutes in Minneapolis on May 25

The statue, which had been the subject of an 11,000-strong petition to have it removed, was pulled to the ground before being rolled along the road and pushed into the harbour

Historian and broadcaster David Olusoga said one of the main problems the statue caused was that people did not understand why it was a source of upset for many in the city

“This is a city that is about 14% BAME with a statue of somebody who was not just a slave trader, he was involved in the Royal Africa Company, the company that trafficked more people into slavery than any in British history,” Mr Olusoga told BBC News

People laid placards around the plinth, while the Mayor of Bristol said he felt no sense of loss after the statue was pulled down - Labour leader Keir Starmer said it should have been taken down “a long, long time ago”

: @BenBirchallUK

While Home Secretary Priti Patel described the incident as “utterly disgraceful”, it sparked worldwide discussion about whether other statues - such as that of British imperialist Cecil Rhodes at Oxford University - should be removed also

: @parsnippo

Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees confirmed the Colston statue would be exhibited in a museum, alongside placards from the Black Lives Matter protest

But what would happen to the empty plinth where Colston once stood?

One response came from two Bristolians, who taped a cardboard sign over the original plaque, reading: “This plaque is dedicated to the slaves that were taken from their homes”

: @BenBirchallUK

Artist Marc Quinn went one step further - on Wednesday morning shortly before 5am his sculpture, entitled A Surge of Power (Jen Reid), was erected without the prior knowledge of Bristol City Council

The sculpture depicts Mrs Reid, who was photographed standing on the empty plinth after the Colston statue was toppled.

After the sculpture was installed, Mrs Reid stood in front of it with her fist in the air

“It’s just incredible,” Mrs Reid told the Guardian.

“This is going to continue the conversation. I can’t see it coming down in a hurry” https://www.sloughobserver.co.uk/news/national-news/18583335.sculpture-black-protester-installed-plinth-edward-colston-statue/