Culture war 'doesn't end with statues' says Deane

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Author Alex Deane appeared on GB News and drew comparisons between Shakespeare and the modern-day “mob” who he says care very little about “analysis and interpretation”. Mr Deane looked at how statue vandals do not do their research into the figures they are against and pointed out huge errors vandals made about former Prime Minister Robert Peel’s views on slavery. Mr Deane was concerned the statue vandalism was only the beginning of a culture war and sided with those who “preserve” British history.

Mr Deane appeared on GB News and told the programme: I thought about this when the statue of Robert Peel was going to come down. 

“And the demands that things were being renamed because they had Robert’s name on them. 

“At the start of Julius Caesar, the mob captures a man called Cinna because they think he’s Cinna the conspirator. 

“And it turns out he’s Cinna the poet, but the mob says so what, tearing through his bad verses. 

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“Well, when it turned out the people who were concerned about Robert Peel were accusing him of an interest in slavery because that’s what his father had done. 

“They said, so what does it matter to take down the statue anyway.”

Sir Robert was the shared name of a father and son where the father opposed the abolition of slavery because it affected his cotton business. 

However, his son was considered to have been the man behind modern-day policing and has statues all across the UK. 

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Anti-racism campaigners nonetheless called for statues of both men to be removed in places like Leeds and Manchester. 

Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham commented on the situation last year, stating there was a huge misunderstanding among campaigners. 

Mr Deane continued: “We truly are in the realms of the sins of the father here. 

“So you know, I would say what starts with statues doesn’t end with statues and in fact what starts with statues isn’t really about statues at all. 

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“It’s about a culture war in which people don’t believe anymore in analysis or interpretation or real thoughts. 

“It’s a division between destroyers and preservers and in that divide, I am absolutely on the side of the preservers.”

Statues across the UK have been targeted by campaigners who say some historical figures should not be celebrated due to their links to slavery, racism or other viewpoints which are not supported today. 

The statue of slave trader Edward Colson in Bristol was thrown in the harbour following several days of protests in Summer 2020. 

A statue of Winston Churchill outside parliament was also vandalised calling the former Prime Minister a “racist”.  

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