Labour shadow minister Lisa Nandy demands Foreign Office remove five giant 'racist' British Empire murals including one depicting ‘Africa as a little naked boy carrying a fruit basket’ in wake of Black Lives Matter protests
- Shadow foreign secretary reported to have raised the works with Dominic Raab
- Pieces by Sigismund Goetze include images of empire seen as problematic
- Include representation of Africa as a little boy surrounded by white adults
The Foreign Office is coming under pressure to remove British Empire-era murals from its walls in the wake of racism protests across the UK.
Lisa Nandy, the shadow foreign secretary, is reported to have raised the century-old works which line the grand staircase in the palatial Whitehall building with counterpart Dominic Raab.
The pieces by Sigismund Goetze, which were completed between 1914 and 1921, include images of empire seen as problematic by campaigners, including a representation of Africa as a fruit-bearing little boy surrounded by white Anglo-Saxon adults.
Caroline Dakers, professor of cultural history at UAL, told the Guardian: 'I can understand why people feel this work should be removed from a government building, but I think it should be preserved somewhere else, such as a museum.
'We can then have a discussion in a multilayered way and reach a greater understanding why Britain had these views about empire.'

There are five murals on the staircase, entitled, Britannia Pacificatrix, Britannia Sponsa, Britannia Nutrix, Brittania Bellatrix and Britannia Mater Colonorum.
According to the Foreign Office's online photo album they show the 'origin, education, development, expansion and triumph of the British Empire, leading up to the Covenant of the League of Nations'.

The pieces by Sigismund Goetze, which were completed between 1914 and 1921, include images of empire seen as problematic by campaigners

Foreign visitors arriving to see Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab (pictured yesterday) see the murals as they climb the grand staircase in the heart of the ornate building
The Foreign Office has been asked to comment.
It comes as the Government finds itself embroiled in another race row.
Boris Johnson was facing fresh criticism today after choosing a No10 policy adviser who once branded the idea of institutional racism as a 'myth' to set up a commission on racial inequality.
The choice of Munira Mirza, the head of the Prime Minister's policy unit and a former deputy mayor from his time in charge of London, sparked uproar from campaigners and Labour MPs.
They claim her previous comments on race should prevent her from holding a role in setting up the investigation, launched in the wake of the protests which swept Britain in the last week.

The choice of Munira Mirza, the head of the Prime minister's policy unit and a former deputy mayor from his time in charge of London, sparked uproar from campaigners and Labour MPs

Mr Johnson last night defended his decision to launch a commission on racial inequality after Labour claimed it was a 'back of a fag packet' plan designed to 'assuage the Black Lives Matter protest'
They also raised concerns over her alleged decision to give a role to Trevor Phillips, the former head of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, who has angered some with past comments on British Asian communities.
Dawn Butler, the Labour MP and former equalities minister, told the Guardian Ms Mirza's role 'undermines its credibility from the very outset by appointing someone who stands by Johnson's racist comments, rejected the Lammy review, saying ''institutional racism' is 'a perception more than a reality'', and opposed Theresa May's very own Racial Disparities Audit'.
She added: 'I am tired of fighting the government on this issue. The only review needed is into all the past consultations and reviews as well as their failure to implement over 200 prior recommendations.'
And the Institute for Race Relations ThinkTank said: 'Any inquiry into inequality has to acknowledge structural and systemic factors.
'Munira Mirza's previous comments describes a ''grievance culture'' within the anti-racist field and she has previously argued that institutional racism is 'a perception more than a reality.'
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