The Museum of the Home in Hoxton may move a controversial statue of a slave merchant after facing boycott calls.
The museum is based in former almshouses built with money from Sir Robert Geffrye, who made his fortune in the slave trade.
His statue stands outside, prompting boycott calls from teachers in Haringey, Hackney and Islington and campaign group Hackney Stand Up to Racism, among others.
In a recent statement on its website, the museum said it could move the statue to a “less prominent space” at the site on Kingsland Road.
“We feel that the statue of Robert Geffrye on the front of the Museum’s buildings does not promote the sense of belonging that is so important for our visitors, and fundamental to the Museum’s values,” it said.
"We believe there is potential to retain the statue on site but in an alternative and less prominent space, where we can better tell the full story of the history of the buildings and Robert Geffrye’s life, including his involvement in transatlantic slavery.
“We are confronting, challenging and learning from the uncomfortable truths of the origins of the Museum buildings, to fulfil our commitment to diversity and inclusion.”
A consultation of more than 2,000 people run by the museum in 2020 found most respondents wanted the statue to be taken down, but the then Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, said it should remain.
The museum says it is awaiting upcoming guidance from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on “effective decisions concerning heritage”.
When the venue reopened in June, after a multimillion pound refit, it placed a plaque to recognise Geffrye’s “trading of enslaved people from Africa”.
Geffrye, who lived between 1613 and 1704, was involved in the East India Company and Royal African Company, according to the museum. He also part-owned a slave ship called the China Merchant.
