Melody Beard will forever rue the moment she took her youngest daughter to use the toilet and missed the statue of slave-trader Edward Colston being thrown into Bristol’s harbour.
The 40-year-old had, like many on that day, joined protests in the city’s centre, along with her husband and two children.
But at the moment on 7 June 2020 when the bronze statue was toppled, dragged to the harbourside and dumped in the grimy waters, she was away from the action, taking her daughter to the loo.
On Thursday, the day after four anti-racism campaigners were cleared of criminal damage for their involvement in pulling down the statue and throwing it in the River Avon during a Black Lives Matter protest, Beard was glad to have witnessed most of the historic event.
Beard, who has lived in the city for more than 10 years and runs a cafe in a community venue, said: “Obviously it was a situation of the moment – everyone was feeding off each other.
“I don’t necessarily think we should just point to four people specifically, because there were many more people involved.
“It started an international debate about why we put certain people on plinths, why are they important, why are they usually male and white, and not really relevant any more.
“A lot of Bristolians, living in Bristol, feel very connected to the event.
“My husband and I took our children, two little girls, and we missed the real action. We heard everyone cheering but because one of them needed to pee we had to go … we had to move on because she was desperate … so we were almost at that moment.”
There was a supportive mood for the jury on a grey, drizzly Thursday in the city, a place known for its political activism, free spirit and creativity.
Ashley, 28, who asked not to have his full name published as he works in the public sector, agreed with Beard’s view that there were many involved, not just the four standing trial.
He said: “The powers that be had to pretty much appear to be doing something but the outcome was set in stone before it went to trial. Ultimately, it was the right thing for there to be an ‘all clear’ essentially.
“For many, many years, people were advocating for something to be done [about the statue] and the powers that be didn’t do anything.
“The fact people had to take it into their own hands was through [the authorities’] own making – to hold a few accountable for what was the actions of many would have been grossly wrong in my eyes and I think most agree with that.”
Alagie Sowe, 33, said he did not think figures such as Colston should be celebrated with statues, but added: “It should be kept in a museum where people can see it and remember, so the history is there to be learned. If it was in a more appropriate place, people wouldn’t have felt they had to bring it down.”
The statue was later taken out of the harbour and was put on display, on its side, in M Shed, the museum of Bristol, in an exhibition that ended on 3 January 2022. The statue is now in the museum’s adjoining L Shed, where it can be seen in pre-booked tours.
But other citizens were less engaged.
Otis McDonald, 35, who recently moved to Bristol from London, said: “To me, it wasn’t a very big deal. I get why they did it and I think it was the right thing to clear them. I didn’t follow the background. I was living in London at the time.
“I didn’t follow it as closely as I should have done. Considering the current climate, the focus on the BLM movement, I can understand why they [reached the verdict].”
Aisha Sheikh, 21, who was born in Kenya but moved to the UK when she was younger and has lived in the city for two years, said: “My dad always said to keep out of politics. I just live my life.
“It’s not that I just keep out of it – if I had something to say about it I would, but I just don’t know that much about it. I saw the protests happening, but I’m just an observer.”
