Graffiti on Edinburgh statue of slave trade leader has been cleaned up

The statue memorialises Henry Dundas, a Scottish politician who encouraged prolonging slavery.

One of the city’s iconic statues has been cleaned up after it was defaced amid Black Lives Matter protests this weekend.

The memorial, erected in memory of Henry Dundas, a Scottish politician who is known for delaying the abolition of slavery, was covered in graffiti saying “BLM” and “George Floyd.”

Over the course of the day, the paint has been removed and the statue stands looking polished once again.

Melville Monument in St Andrew Square

The prominent landmark was a popular target for anti-racism activists over the weekend given Dundas’s contentious links to the slave trade.

This graffiti came after a statue of slave trader Edward Colston was toppled and thrown into a river in Bristol during the Black Lives Matter protest.

Crowds descended on Holyrood Park to join the international fight against racism in light of George Floyd’s death.

The unarmed black man was unlawfully killed by a US police officer in Minneapolis who was kneeling on his neck for a period of up to nine minutes.

Officer Derek Chauvin has since been charge with second-degree murder.