There’s been a lot of buzz lately about the new laws that are going to crack down on those pesky thugs who think it’s a good idea to climb all over Winston Churchill’s statue in Westminster. Despite not being officially classified as a war memorial, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has decided to give special status to this particular monument of our greatest ever PM. Protestors who decide to use the statue as their personal jungle gym will now face up to three months in the slammer, along with a hefty £1,000 fine.
Seems like some folks have been treating Churchill’s statue like their own personal rock climbing wall, with many managing to escape arrest by claiming they were just innocently clambering on top of it. Sir Keir Starmer, not really sure why this matters, but he told The Sun that Churchill is basically the king of all British heroes and using his statue for protests is a big no-no. Can’t really blame him for wanting to protect Churchill’s honor, I guess.
The government’s Crime and Policing Bill is going to include these new punishments, making it crystal clear that climbing on war memorials like the Cenotaph or Churchill’s statue is a big fat no-go. Just last April, a group of trans rights activists decided to scale the Churchill statue and wave their placards around after some big Supreme Court decision. Currently, the only way you can get in trouble for messing with the statue is if you actually damage it, but that’s all about to change.
The 12-foot tall Churchill likeness has been standing tall in Parliament Square since November 1973, when his widow Clementine unveiled it. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper chimed in, saying that as the country celebrates VE Day, it’s only right that we show Churchill’s statue the respect it deserves. Along with all the other war memorials scattered around the country, of course.
It’s kind of crazy to think that people would use a statue of someone as iconic as Churchill as a soapbox for their own causes. Not really sure what they’re hoping to achieve by doing so, but I guess some folks just don’t think things through. At least now there are laws in place to make sure they face the music if they decide to pull a stunt like that.
Historians recently took issue with a report from the BBC claiming that Churchill was responsible for the “mass killing” of millions during the 1943 Bengal famine. Sounds like a pretty bold claim, but who knows what really went down back then? Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like there’s always more to the story than what meets the eye.
All in all, it’s clear that Churchill’s statue is off-limits for anyone looking to cause a scene. The new laws are meant to protect not only the statue itself but also the legacy of a man who played a huge role in shaping the course of history. Let’s hope these measures are enough to deter any would-be troublemakers from trying to turn Churchill’s monument into their own personal soapbox.
