Bristol Protests

In June 2020, following a Black Lives Matter demonstration in response to the murder of George Floyd in the US, protesters toppled Edward Colston's statue in Bristol City Centre, sparking a national and global discussion.
In the Spring of 2021, an afternoon of peaceful 'Kill the Bill' protest turned into riot and a night of violence and fire at the Bridewell Police Station in response to the government's proposed Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.
Even to this day, the case of the Colston Four is challenged and brought back before the court of appeal by the attorney general.

The culture of protest has a fascinating history, in Bristol arguably more than most cities. We're hosting a panel of experts to delve deeper into the role of policing protest in the UK, how the police manage crowds, provoke violence and perhaps even break the law.
We'll also explore the role and value of statues, especially as they were pulled down across the world in recent years, and the stories they were supposed to tell and how they were challenged. 

We will welcome Matt Foot and Morag Livingstone, authors of Charged, an essential new investigation into the role of policing since the 1980s.
They will be in discussion with Alex von Tunzelmann, whose book Fallen Idols looks at the global wave of iconoclasm that in 2020 took down the statues of slaveholders and imperialists.
Bristol247 journlist Martin Booth will also chair the panel and share his own experience of reporting from the 'Kill the Bill' protest in Bristol.

Further details: 01179252274