At least 30,000 people in Belgium have signed a petition to remove the country’s statues of King Leopold II, who was known for leading the colonial effort to invade Congo, resulting in the deaths of millions of Congolese.
The effort comes amid widespread protests that have erupted in the U.S. and around the world in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after a white officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis.
“Despite all the contempt he had for life and the Congolese people, Leopold II is still remembered throughout Belgium,” the change.org petition’s description states.
“This is why we ask the City of Brussels to remove any statue in homage to Léopold II … this statue has no place in Brussels or in Belgium,” the petition says, and includes the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter.
The organizers marked a deadline of June 30 to obtain 35,000 signatures. As of Thursday morning, the petition is just 1,000 signatures away from achieving that goal.
Belgian media reported the defacement of several statues of King Leopold II since the protests began, including a bust of the colonial leader in the city of Ghent. That statue was covered in red paint and the words “I can’t breathe,” a phrase repeated by Mr. Floyd during the fatal incident.
• Lauren Toms can be reached at lmeier@washingtontimes.com.
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