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Crimes without criminals

London Museum Docklands — Talk

  • A statue with a cloth covering its head and shoulders holds a "Black Lives Matter" sign. The background features a brick building with barred windows.

    Robert Milligan's statue, which once stood in front of London Museum Docklands.

2pm – 3.30pm

Sat 10 May 2025

FREE

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Join us for a thought-provoking talk examining the contrasting legacies of oppressors and resistors.

This talk delves into the conscious glorification of oppressive figures like Edward Colston and Robert Milligan, who were celebrated as philanthropists while their roles in enslavement were downplayed. In contrast, there are the resistance heroes who risked everything to fight for freedom and justice: Toussaint L’Ouverture and the Haitian revolutionaries, Sam Sharpe, Nanny of the Maroons, Nat Turner, John Brown and Harriet Tubman.

Explore the ongoing tensions between glorifying oppressors and honouring the liberators who resisted. This event offers a crucial space for dialogue, reflection and rethinking how we remember history.

This event is part of the year-long commemorations marking 30 years of African Remembrance Day.

Hooray, you're coming for free! Why not give a little back and donate when booking your ticket?

For:
Adults only
How to attend:
In-person only
Duration:
90 mins
Booking guidance:
Advanced booking recommended

Speakers

Dan Hicks

Author

Dan Hicks is a Professor of Contemporary Archaeology at University of Oxford, Curator of World Archaeology at Pitt Rivers Museum and a Fellow of St Cross College, Oxford. He has published widely on material and visual culture from the recent past and the near present. His most recent books are The Brutish Museums, Lande: the Calais 'Jungle' and Beyond, Archaeology and Photography and Isle of Rust. His next book, Every Monument Will Fall: A Prehistory of the Culture War, is published in May 2025.

Angela Haynes

Moderator

Angela Haynes has taught in SOAS Department of Development Studies since 2018. She currently teaches on the online Humanitarian MSc programme and is a Senior Teaching Fellow on Migration, as well as a coordinator of SOAS's Ebony Initiative Writing and Presentation Space for Black scholars. She teaches Afropean: African Diaspora Studies in Europe and Black London courses for Syracuse University's London programme.

Tags

Talk London Museum Docklands Adults only

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