How to solve statue row –  replace them with robots | Matt Mohan-Hickson

And I am starting to get the feeling that 2020 will be the year that continues to prove this quote to be true.

If you had set out a few years ago to write an apocalyptic novel, film or TV show and featured a line in which the daily government press conferences were cancelled at weekends because of low ratings, it would have seemed far too ludicrous.

Now in the middle of the pandemic, when a deeply important campaign to make us tackle racism in society is surging, we have spent a week arguing about statues.

Well, fear not any more, I have the solution. We should take them all down and replace them with giant robots – in particular those of the Gundam variety.

Not only do they look extremely cool, they are not burdened by the controversies of our historical ancestors.

Except, of course, giant robots are nearly always piloted by child soldiers who are then subjected to the horrors of war. Cool designs though.

I’m being facetious but the point is there are no easy answers when it comes to the debate about statues. Life is more complex than simple concepts of ‘good and evil’. I am not going to pretend I shed any tears at the removal of Edward Colston’s statue or that of Robert Milligan. In fact it seemed quite ludicrous that the Colston statue was still standing in Bristol in 2020, especially as residents have been calling for years to be rid of him.

However I feel like we’re on the edge of a slippery slope. A website has been launched listing a number of ‘racist’ statues campaigners are demanding be removed. This includes ones of Nelson and Sir Francis Drake in London as well as the one of Earl Grey in Newcastle – Earl Grey being the prime minister who abolished slavery…

Also on the list is Robert Peel, the founder of the police, seemingly having been confused for his father – who had the same name. It feels like a needless distraction from the important debate about tackling racism.

Why were people doing blackface in 21st century?

Shows Little Britain, Come Fly With Me and League of Gentlemen have been taken off Netflix and iPlayer over the use of blackface.

Bo Selecta has gone from All4 after star Leigh Francis blacked up. It’s not that they were removed but that people in the 21st century were using this offensive make-up at all.

The BBC launched Come Fly With Me in 2010, not the 1970s. Blackface has been seen as deeply offensive for decades, so why were TV companies commissioning shows with it this millennium?

It doesn’t stop at TV. Canadian PM Justin Trudeau was the subject of a black/brown face scandal – and was still re-elected in 2019. Western society has a way to go.

Streaming service’s hollow words in wake of BLM rising

In the wake of George Floyd’s death, Netflix has been championing black creators on its social media.

The streaming service’s UK Twitter account posted a ‘where to start’ guide for people wanting to know more about the BLM movement. Yet this rings hollow when you look at Netflix’s own actions.

In December, a new, all-black cast sketch show called Astronomy Club made its debut with little fanfare. It features hilarious skits such as Bodegas and Dragons lampooning offensive fantasy tropes and how corporations turn a blind eye to complaints about them.

So Netflix picked June, with the news dominated by BLM, to not give the show a second series – despite all its big talk.