The recent debate about whether Liverpool University should re-name its Gladstone building due to the former Prime Minister's support of colonial slavery raised some interesting comments, including this Guardian article by Michael Rosen. The number of buildings, roads, bridges, rivers etc named after historical figures with reputations at least partially forged in Britain's Colonial past is huge, to say nothing of the many statues. This is particularly the case in places like Liverpool and Bristol where the slave trade played a major role in their growth as cities. And just think of the number of 'Victorias' here and in former colonies around the world.
As Rosen points out, simply re-naming may not be the best thing to do. "Let’s never forget: these were crimes against humanity. Simply taking away their names might in a paradoxical way serve the forces of occlusion, quietly sifting away these leaders and perpetrators." He suggests an alternative would be "to rename buildings, but in situ under the heading “Formerly known as …”, giving us the chance to read about that person’s history and indeed the reasons for the renaming." Read the article here.
As Rosen points out, simply re-naming may not be the best thing to do. "Let’s never forget: these were crimes against humanity. Simply taking away their names might in a paradoxical way serve the forces of occlusion, quietly sifting away these leaders and perpetrators." He suggests an alternative would be "to rename buildings, but in situ under the heading “Formerly known as …”, giving us the chance to read about that person’s history and indeed the reasons for the renaming." Read the article here.
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