CLOSED: Representing race and equality in public spaces

UPDATE: This consultation has now closed. We are grateful to all those who took the time to share their thoughts on how we represent race and equality in our public spaces. In the coming months, we will be consulting with local people who have relevant expertise and experience to consider the suggestions we have received and how best to take them forward.

The responses received during the consultation in Tower Hamlets will also be fed into the wider GLA consultation which is reviewing the diversity of London’s public realm.

Events since the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in the United States have led us to pause and think carefully about what more we can do to live up to our core values of anti-racism and equality. We have a proud modern history in Tower Hamlets of championing diversity and standing up to discrimination, but there is more we can do.

Historic representation in public spaces

On Tuesday 9 June, we removed a statue of slave trader Robert Milligan from West India Quay. Now we are asking our residents to tell us if there are additional monuments, plaques, buildings, roads or other representations of history, in our borough, that they feel are at odds with the values that we all champion.

The suggestions will be reviewed with a range of possible outcomes including but not limited to relocation, the addition of explanatory information, renaming or removal. In some cases, it may be decided that no action is necessary. In the coming weeks, more details will be made available about how we will ensure genuine community involvement in reaching those eventual decisions.

Making a suggestion couldn't be easier. Simply drop a pin on the map below and explain why you think the site in question should be included in the review.

Under-representation in public spaces

Of course, this discussion is not only about re-examining our past, but also about positively shaping our future. As well as telling us about sites that you feel need to be reviewed as outlined above, we also want you to tell us about issues, achievements or individuals that you feel are under-represented in our public spaces.

The issue of under-representation does not need to be limited to race. Your suggestions could including themes from across the equalities landscape including civil rights, workers’, women’s and LGBTQ+ rights and more. To have your say on under-representation, click on the ideas board below.

It's really important that this conversation captures the views and ideas of a range of people that reflects our diverse borough. One way we can achieve that is to understand a bit more about who is participating and providing us with information. Once you've submitted your comments on either the map or the ideas board, we'd love it if you could take a couple of minutes to tell us a bit about yourself by completing the short survey below.