Oxford college backs removal of Rhodes' statue
A statue of Cecil Rhodes, a controversial historical figure, is seen outside Oriel College. Rhodes made a fortune in the late 19th century from gold and diamond mines where miners labored in brutal conditions. He was an education benefactor whose legacy includes Oxford University’s prestigious Rhodes scholarships, which have been awarded to international students for over a century.
An Oxford University college has voted in favor of removing a statue of 19th-century colonialist Cecil Rhodes, less than two weeks after thousands of protesters called for it to be taken down.
Oriel College said it also wanted to set up an independent inquiry into the “key issues” surrounding the statue of the Victorian mining tycoon.
Rhodes made a fortune in the late 19th century from gold and diamond mines where miners labored in brutal conditions. He was an education benefactor whose legacy includes Oxford University’s prestigious Rhodes scholarships, which have been awarded to international students for over a century.
“Both of these decisions were reached after a thoughtful period of debate and reflection and with the full awareness of the impact these decisions are likely to have in Britain and around the world,” it said in a statement on Wednesday.
Oriel College has been under pressure for several years from the #RhodesMustFall campaign, which argues the statue glorifies racism and is an insult to black students.
This time, the campaign was reignited by the global explosion of Black Lives Matter demonstrations, following the killing in the United States of African-American George Floyd by a white police officer.
Protestors carry placards during a demonstration called by the Rhodes Must Fall campaign calling for the removal of the statue of British imperialist Cecil John Rhodes outside Oriel College, at the University of Oxford on June 9, 2020.
Oriel’s statement said it would examine how to improve access and attendance of Black Asian and minority ethnic undergraduate and graduate students.
The independent commission of inquiry would also review “how the college’s 21st-century commitment to diversity can sit more easily with its past.”
In a statement, the #RhodesMustFall campaign group said it welcomed Oriel College’s intention to take down the statue, but demanded a stronger commitment to follow it through.
“This is a potentially epoch-defining moment for our institution, the University of Oxford. We can, potentially, offer a powerful example of the de-colonial project in higher education in the UK and beyond,” the group said.
Susan Brown, the leader of Oxford City Council, said she welcomed the news from Oriel College and paid tribute to the campaigners.
“The city council would welcome an early submission of a formal planning application from Oriel to accompany the review process and feed into it,” she said in a statement.
“I would like to pay particular tribute to the #RhodesMustFall campaign who have seen their aims come a big step closer today, and also to Black Lives Matter campaigners who have reinvigorated this debate about our history and how it should be recognised.”
Earlier on Wednesday, universities minister Michelle Donelan said she was opposed to removing the statue, calling it “short-sighted.”
“Because if we cannot rewrite our history, instead what we should do is remember and learn from it,” she told a Higher Education Policy Institute event.
Campaigners had also demanded changes to the Rhodes scholarship, which has been awarded to more than 8,000 overseas students to study at Oxford University, since 1902.
A Telegraph view said nobody should be too surprised at Oxford’s capitulation over Cecil Rhodes statue, because universities are nowadays “hotbeds of political correctness, safe spaces and acceptable opinion” instead of a public sphere for open talk.
The Rhodes statue will stay up until the inquiry finishes its work later this year.
