Rhodes Must Fall#Other universities

{{short description|Anti-apartheid protest movement regarding statues at the University of Cape Town in South Africa}}

{{Infobox civil conflict

| title = Rhodes Must Fall

| image = 220px

| caption = Statue of Cecil Rhodes by Marion Walgate (1934), on its former site before removal

| date = {{Start date|2015|03|09|df=y}}

| coordinates =

| causes = Perceived lack of transformation in South Africa following colonialism and apartheid{{cite AV media | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWVJnBVnyPc | title=University Assembly: The Rhodes Statue and Transformation | publisher=University of Cape Town | date=26 Mar 2015 | medium=Video }}

| status =

| goals = Removal of the statue of Cecil Rhodes on campus, "decolonisation of education" and "racial transformation" at the university

| result = Statue removed 9 April 2015

| methods = * Occupation

| notes =

}}

File:Goodbye Cecil John Rhodes20 (16481463023).jpg

Rhodes Must Fall was a protest movement that began on 9 March 2015, originally directed against a statue at the University of Cape Town (UCT) that commemorates Cecil Rhodes. The campaign for the statue's removal received global attention{{cite news|last1=Hall|first1=Martin|title=The symbolic statue dividing a South African university|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-31945680|access-date=4 April 2015|work=BBC News}}{{cite web | url=http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2015/04/01/rhodes-must-fall-everywhere/ | title=HLOPHE: Rhodes must fall everywhere | publisher=Yale Daily News | date=1 April 2015 | access-date=9 April 2015 | author=Hlophe, Wadantu}} and led to a wider movement to decolonise education across South Africa.{{cite web | url=http://postcolonialist.com/civil-discourse/rhodes-must-fall-decolonisation-symbolism-happening-uct-south-africa/ | title="Rhodes Must Fall" – Decolonisation Symbolism – What is happening at UCT, South Africa? | publisher=The Post Colonialist | date=29 March 2015 | access-date=9 April 2015 | author=Kamanzi, Brian}} On 9 April 2015, following a UCT Council vote the previous night, the statue was removed.

Rhodes Must Fall captured national headlines throughout 2015 and sharply divided public opinion in South Africa. It also inspired the emergence of allied student movements at other universities, both within South Africa and elsewhere in the world.

Background

A bronze statue of a seated Cecil Rhodes, a 19th-century British industrialist, was sculpted by Marion Walgate ({{née|Mason}}), the wife of architect Charles Walgate. Charles had worked with fellow architect Joseph Michael Solomon in designing and constructing several buildings of the University of Cape Town (UCT) during this period. Marion's statue of Rhodes was unveiled in 1934 and installed on the UCT campus, as the university was built on land donated by Rhodes.Jeremy Harding, [http://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2015/04/01/jeremy-harding/rhodes-must-fall/ Rhodes Must Fall], London Review of Books Blog, 1 April 2015[http://www.artefacts.co.za/main/Buildings/archframes.php?archid=1805 WALGATE, Charles Percival], Artefacts.co.za Calls for the statue's removal had been slowly increasing for several decades, with Afrikaner students first demanding the removal of the statue in the 1950s.{{cite web|url = http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Cecil-John-Rhodes-As-divisive-in-death-as-in-life-20150322|title = Rhodes: As divisive in death as in life|date = 22 March 2015|access-date = 20 January 2016|website = News24|last = Masondo|first = Sipho}}

Ideology and goals

Rhodes Must Fall describes itself as "a collective movement of students and staff members mobilising for direct action against the reality of institutional racism at the University of Cape Town."{{cite web|url=http://rhodesmustfall.co.za/ |title=Rhodes Must Fall |publisher=Rhodes Must Fall |access-date=2016-01-29}} Whilst initially being focused on the removal of the statue of Cecil John Rhodes, Rhodes Must Fall states that "the fall of 'Rhodes' is symbolic for the inevitable fall of white supremacy and privilege at our campus."

The movement was initially about the removal of the statue of Cecil Rhodes, a symbol which the protesters felt was oppressive, and grew to encompass institutional racism,{{cite web | url=http://www.thedailyvox.co.za/rhodes-must-fall-the-university-must-be-decolonised/ | title=Rhodes Must Fall: the university must be decolonised | work=Daily Vox | date=2 April 2015 | access-date=9 April 2015 | author=Pather, Ra'eesa}} the lack of racial transformation at the university,{{cite web | url=http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2015-03-13-the-rhodes-statue-must-fall-ucts-radical-rebirth/ | title='The Rhodes statue must fall': UCT's radical rebirth | work=Daily Maverick | date=13 March 2015 | access-date=9 April 2015 | author=Hodes, Rebecca}} and access to tertiary education and student accommodation.{{cite web| url=http://www.rdm.co.za/politics/2016/02/26/we-are-at-a-precipice.-we-must-act-to-save-our-universities |title=We are at a precipice. We must act to save our universities |date=26 February 2016 |access-date=26 February 2016}}{{cite news| url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21693278-students-are-throwing-colonial-art-pyre-whiteness-burning |title=Whiteness burning |newspaper=The Economist |date=20 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016}}

Students made use of occupation, civil disobedience, and violence during the protests.{{cite web |url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/parliamentary-committee-condemns-uct-violence-20160218 |title=Parliamentary committee condemns UCT violence |date=18 February 2016 |access-date=21 February 2016 |author=Singh, Kaveel}} Actions included throwing human feces at the Rhodes statue, occupying UCT offices, and burning art, vehicles, and buildings.{{cite web|url = http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/rhodes-statue-students-occupy-offices-1.1835276#.VSEO86g0WSo|title = Rhodes statue: students occupy offices|date = 21 March 2015|access-date = 5 April 2015|website = IOL News|last = Kamaldien|first = Yazeed}} Students also made use of the internet; protesting students created a Facebook page entitled 'Rhodes Must Fall' and promoted and made use of the hashtag '#RhodesMustFall' on Twitter.{{cite web|url = http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Rhodes-Must-Fall-campaign-gains-momentum-at-UCT-20150323|title = Rhodes Must Fall campaign gains momentum at UCT|date = 23 March 2015|access-date = 5 April 2015|website = News24|publisher = City Press|last = Masondo|first = Sipho}}

=Leaders=

The first action of the movement took place on 9 March 2015, when Chumani Maxwele "picked up one of the buckets of faeces that sat reeking on the kerbside" and "hurled its contents" to a bronze statue of Rhodes, as reported by The Guardian.{{cite news|last1=Fairbanks|first1=Eve|title=Why South African students have turned on their parents' generation|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2015/nov/18/why-south-african-students-have-turned-on-their-parents-generation|access-date=11 May 2016|work=The Guardian|date=18 November 2015|quote=Maxwele travelled by minibus taxi out to Khayelitsha, picked up one of the buckets of shit that sat reeking on the kerbside, and brought it back to the campus of the University of Cape Town (UCT), where, in 2011, he had gained a scholarship to study political science. He took it to a bronze statue of the 19th-century British colonialist Cecil John Rhodes that held pride of place on campus, just downhill from the convocation hall. Rhodes had been one of the main architects of South Africa's segregation. "Where are our heroes and ancestors?" Maxwele shouted to a gathering, curious crowd. Then he opened the bucket and hurled its contents into Rhodes's face.}} The Times later named Chumani as "The faeces-throwing activist who orchestrated the #RhodesMustFall campaign at UCT.{{cite news|title=UCT student transformation leader quits amid homophobia row|url=http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/2015/06/30/UCT-student-transformation-leader-quits-amid-homophobia-row|access-date=11 May 2016|work=The Times|agency=RDM News Wire|date=30 June 2015|quote=The faeces-throwing activist who orchestrated the #RhodesMustFall campaign at UCT‚ Chumani Maxwele‚ was suspended after being accused of shouting at a lecturer: "We must not listen to whites. We do not need their apologies. They have to be removed from UCT and have to be killed".}}"

Ntokozo Qwabe was named as "one of the leaders of the Rhodes Must Fall movement at Oxford University in the UK" by BusinessTech{{cite news|title=Rhodes Must Fall leader dares whites to have him expelled from Oxford|url=http://businesstech.co.za/news/lifestyle/122371/rhodes-must-fall-leader-dares-whites-to-have-him-expelled-from-oxford/|access-date=11 May 2016|work=BusinessTech|date=4 May 2016|quote=Ntokozo Qwabe, one of the leaders of the Rhodes Must Fall movement at Oxford University in the UK, bragged last week on Facebook about the way he treated waitress, Ashleigh Schultz, at a cafe in Observatory, Cape Town.}} and by the Daily Mirror.{{Cite news|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/oxford-student-behind-rhodes-must-7865828|title=Student who led campaign to ban 'racist' statue 'refused to tip white waitress'|last=Relph|first=Sam|date=2016-04-30|work=mirror|access-date=2018-10-26}} Parisian magazine Jeune Afrique named Youssef Robinson "one of the leaders of the movement in Britain."{{cite news|last1=Eliot|first1=Aimie|title=#RhodesMustFall : les étudiants d'Oxford et de Cambridge prennent le relais|url=http://www.jeuneafrique.com/308501/politique/rhodesmustfall-etudiants-doxford-de-cambridge-prennent-relais/|access-date=11 May 2016|work=Jeune Afrique|date=9 March 2016|language=fr|quote=Yussef Robinson, l'un des leaders du mouvement anglais,}} Athabile Nonxuba was also named a leader of the movement at UCT by City Press.{{Cite news|url=http://city-press.news24.com/News/the-protests-will-continue-says-rhodes-must-fall-leader-20160221|title=The protests will continue, says Rhodes Must Fall leader|work=CityPress|access-date=2018-10-26|language=en}} National Public Radio interviewed Kgotsi Chikane and named him "one of the leaders of the Rhodes Must Fall movement."{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/03/28/395608605/why-south-african-students-say-the-statue-of-rhodes-must-fall|title=Why South African Students Say The Statue Of Rhodes Must Fall|work=NPR.org|access-date=2018-10-26|language=en}}

Protests

= 2015 Protests: The statue, decolonisation =

File:-RMF_Statue_Removal_32_Desmond_Bowles.jpg

The first protest, and the action that started the Rhodes Must Fall campaign occurred on 9 March 2015, when Chumani Maxwele threw human faeces onto the statue and toyi-toyied with approximately a dozen protesters at the statue.{{cite news|last1=Harding|first1=Andrew|title=Cecil Rhodes monument: A necessary anger?|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-32248605|access-date=11 April 2015|publisher=BBC News|date=11 April 2015}} Maxwele was charged with assault after he was involved in a physical altercation with a security officer during the protest. It was reported that a UCT security officer had prevented a photographer from taking photos of the protest. UCT announced that it was investigating the incident.{{cite news|last1=Bester|first1=Junior|title=Protesters throw poo on Rhodes statue|url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/protesters-throw-poo-on-rhodes-statue-1.1829526#.VSAM3fmUdJc|date=10 March 2015|access-date=4 April 2015|work=IOL}}

On 12 March 2015, an open air dialogue took place on the stairs of Jammie Plaza, the focal point of the UCT Upper Campus, to discuss the statue, with points from all sides being heard. The following week, a march to the UCT administrative building, Bremner, took place, demanding a date for the removal of the statue. On 20 March 2015, students stormed the Bremner building, which houses the UCT offices during a speech addressing the removal of the statue by UCT vice-chancellor Max Price. On 22 March, it was reported that the students were still occupying the building and that members of the public were supplying them with food. The protesters "renamed" the building Azania House, an indication that the movement takes an Africanist position on national identity, thus rejecting the civic and non-racial tradition of the ANC.{{cite web|url = http://ewn.co.za/2015/03/22/UCT-Students-to-continue-occupying-Bremner-building|title = Uct: students to continue occupying bremner building|date = 22 March 2015|access-date = 5 April 2015|website = Eyewitness News|last = Kekana|first = Masa}}

File:-RMF Statue Removal 23.jpg

UCT's senate voted in favour of the removal of the statue on 27 March 2015,{{cite news|title=UCT Senate in favour of statue's removal|url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/UCT-Senate-in-favour-of-statues-removal-20150328|agency=SAPA}} and following the vote, the statue was boarded up pending the final decision from the university's council.{{cite news|title=South Africa university boards up statue of Cecil Rhodes|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/education-32116166|date=30 March 2015|access-date=4 April 2015|work=BBC News}} On 9 April 2015 the Rhodes statue was removed, and later moved into storage.{{cite web|url = http://www.timeslive.co.za/thetimes/2015/03/30/malema-adds-to-the-rhodes-must-fall-chorus|title = Malema adds to the 'Rhodes must fall' chorus|date = 30 March 2015|access-date = 5 April 2015|website = Times Live|last = Jamal|first = Shenaaz}}{{Cite web |date=4 November 2016 |title=Heritage Western Cape approves permanent removal of C. J. Rhodes statue at UCT |url=https://www.hwc.org.za/sites/default/files/CJ%20Rhodes%20statement_1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250625162332/https://www.hwc.org.za/sites/default/files/CJ%20Rhodes%20statement_1.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2025 |access-date=25 June 2025 |website=Heritage Western Cape}}

Protest quickly spread around South Africa's universities,{{cite news|last1=John|first1=Victoria|title=UKZN: Another statue, same revolution?|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2015-03-26-defacing-statues-an-important-part-of-revolution|access-date=4 April 2015|work=Mail & Guardian}} defacing statues and calling for the "decolonisation of education" in South Africa.

== Racist statements ==

=== "One Settler, One Bullet" ===

On 8 April 2015 protesters disrupted the UCT Council meeting which had been called to discuss the removal of the statue and prevented members of the council from leaving.{{cite web|last=Munusamy |first=Ranjeni |url=http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2015-04-09-its-official-rhodeswillfall/#.VkjqE64rL-Z |title=It's official: #RhodesWillFall |website=Daily Maverick |date=2015-04-09 |access-date=2016-01-29}} According to a statement issued by Max Price, Vice-Chancellor of UCT, protestors chanted "One Settler, One Bullet", a rallying cry during apartheid, both at the meeting and the following day during the removal of the statue.{{cite web|url=http://www.rdm.co.za/politics/2015/04/10/uct-boss-i-am-dismayed-at-settler-chants |title=UCT boss: I am dismayed at settler chants | Politics |publisher=RDM |date=2015-04-10 |access-date=2016-01-29}} On Tuesday 14 April 2015, Rhodes Must Fall issued a statement from its official Facebook page calling on its members to join a protest in the parking lot of the Bremner Building which ended with the slogan "One Settler, One Bullet!" This post was subsequently deleted.{{cite web |url=http://news.iafrica.com/sa/990095.html |title=iafrica.com 'One bullet, one settler', says RMF |publisher=News.iafrica.com |date=2015-04-14 |access-date=2016-01-29 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185444/http://news.iafrica.com/sa/990095.html |url-status=dead }}

=== Support for Mcebo Dlamini ===

On 25 April 2015, Mcebo Dlamini, then president of the Students' Representative Council (SRC) of Wits University, stated in a Facebook post that he "loves Adolf Hitler" and admired Hitler for his "charisma" and "organisational skills."{{cite web|url=http://witsvuvuzela.com/2015/04/27/src-president-says-i-love-hitler/ |title=SRC president says: 'I love Hitler' |first= Riante |last=Naidoo |work=Wits Vuvuzela |date=27 April 2015 |access-date=2016-01-29}} In the same post Dlamini also stated that he "loves Robert Mugabe." Dlamini later declared during a radio interview on PowerFM, "Jews are devils," a remark which led the South African Jewish Board of Deputies to lay criminal charges of hate speech against him.{{cite web|url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Dlamini-in-hot-water-again-over-Jews-are-devils-comment-20150629 |title=Dlamini in hot water again over 'Jews are devils' comment |publisher=News24 |date=2015-06-29 |access-date=2016-01-29}} Dlamini was ultimately dismissed as SRC President on unrelated charges of misconduct.{{cite web|first1=Austil|last1=Mathebula|first2=Travis|last2=Carlyle|url=http://citizen.co.za/375475/mcebo-dlamini-dismissed-as-wits-src-president/|title=Mcebo Dlamini dismissed as Wits SRC president|work=The Citizen|access-date=2016-01-29|archive-date=29 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129002002/http://citizen.co.za/375475/mcebo-dlamini-dismissed-as-wits-src-president/|url-status=dead}} Wits University Vice Chancellor Adam Habib stated, "I believe that Mr Dlamini has single-handedly wrought more damage on Wits University's reputation than any other person who I can think of in at least the last two decades."{{cite web|url=http://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2015/05/04/hitler-loving-dlamini-no-longer-in-wits-src |title=Hitler loving Dlamini no longer in Wits SRC |work=Times Live |date=2015-05-04 |access-date=2016-01-29}}

On 7 May 2015 Rhodes Must Fall tweeted "Why Mcebo Dlamini's views on Hitler are not outrageous",{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/RhodesMustFall/status/596092705014439937 |title=Rhodes Must Fall on Twitter: "Why Mcebo Dlamini's views on Hitler are not outrageous |publisher=Twitter.com |date=2015-05-06 |access-date=2016-01-29}} including a link to an anonymous letter in the student newspaper Wits Vuvuzela bearing this title.{{cite news|title=OPINION: Why Mcebo Dlamini's views on Hitler are not outrageous|url=http://witsvuvuzela.com/2015/05/06/opinion-why-mcebo-dlaminis-views-on-hitler-are-not-outrageous/|author=Staff Reporter|access-date=26 February 2016|work=Wits Vuvuzela|date=6 May 2015}} On the same day Eyewitness News reported that the Rhodes Must Fall movement stated that it "rejects the removal of Wits SRC President Mcebo Dlamini."{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/ewnreporter/status/596271346671329280 |title=EWN Reporter on Twitter: "#RhodesMustFall movement says they reject the removal of Wits SRC President Mcebo Dlamini. MK |publisher=Twitter.com |access-date=2016-01-29}}

=2016 protests: accommodation, decolonisation, and institutional culture=

Protests resumed at the University of Cape Town at the start of the academic year on 15 February 2016, when members of the Rhodes Must Fall movement constructed a shack at a heavily used pedestrian crossing and road at the base of the Jameson Steps on the university's main campus.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/shackville-highlights-uct-housing-issue-1984873 | title=#Shackville highlights UCT housing issue | newspaper=Cape Argus | date=15 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016}} The shack was set up to protest what some students perceived as a lack of housing for black students and unfairness in the allocation of student housing.{{cite web|url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/all-students-offered-accommodation-placed-uct-20160221 |title=All students offered accommodation placed - UCT |date=21 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Petersen, Tammy}} The university responded, stating that the shack needed to be relocated by 5 p.m. the following day, as its placement was causing traffic congestion.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/uct-requests-for-shackville-to-be-relocated-1985385 | title=UCT requests for 'Shackville' to be relocated | publisher=African News Agency | date=16 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | first=Carla| last=Bernardo}} The following day, the shack was removed after 6 p.m. by the university.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/chaos-as-shackville-dismantled-1985415 | title=Chaos as 'Shackville' dismantled | publisher=African News Agency | date=16 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | author=Bernardo, Carla}} In response, Rhodes Must Fall supporters vandalised two statues, one of Jan Smuts and another of Maria Emmeline Barnard Fuller;{{cite web| url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/parliamentary-committee-condemns-uct-violence-20160218 |title=Parliamentary committee condemns UCT violence |date=18 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016| author=Singh, Kaveel}} burned paintings, predominantly portraits of white people, collected from university buildings (including two collages in remembrance of the revered anti-apartheid activist Molly Blackburn,{{Cite web|url=https://freemuse.org/news/south-africa-art-destroyed-censored-university-cape-town/|title=South Africa: Art destroyed and censored at University of Cape Town|access-date=12 June 2020|archive-date=12 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210612203913/https://freemuse.org/news/south-africa-art-destroyed-censored-university-cape-town/|url-status=dead}} five anti-apartheid-themed paintings by black artist Keresemose Richard Baholo, who was the first black student to receive a master's degree in Fine Art from UCT{{Cite web|url=http://politicsweb.co.za/politics/rmf-protesters-incinerated-five-richard-baholo-pai|title=RMF protesters incinerated five Richard Baholo paintings |website=politicsweb.co.za|date=18 February 2016|access-date=2016-06-12}} and who later supported the activists' actions{{Cite web|url=http://citizen.co.za/998886/artist-still-sides-with-students-despite-burnt-painting|title=Black artist supports students after burnt work|website=The Citizen|access-date=2016-06-12|archive-date=1 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160501220256/http://citizen.co.za/998886/artist-still-sides-with-students-despite-burnt-painting/|url-status=dead}}); torched three vehicles, including a Jammie Shuttle transport bus;{{cite web| url=http://city-press.news24.com/News/newsmaker-the-price-of-being-the-boss-20160221 |title=Newsmaker: The price of being the boss |date=21 February 2016 |access-date=27 February 2016 |author=Cele, S'thembile}} and petrol-bombed the office of the university's vice-chancellor.{{cite web |url=http://www.ofm.co.za/article/national/179907/price-confirms-uct-office-was-petrol-bombed |title=Price confirms UCT office was petrol-bombed |date=17 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016}}{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/angry-uct-students-set-artworks-alight---pics-1985478 | title=Angry UCT students set artworks alight - PICS | newspaper=Cape Argus | date=17 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | author=Dano, Zodidi}}{{cite web | url=http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2016-02-17-groundup-rhodes-must-fall-protesters-burn-uct-art/ | title=GroundUp Report: Rhodes Must Fall protesters burn UCT art | work=Daily Maverick | date=17 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | author=GroundUp}}{{cite web | url=http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2016-02-16-rhodesmustfall-ucts-day-of-mayhem/ | title=#RhodesMustFall: UCT's Day of Mayhem | work=Daily Maverick | date=16 February 2016 | access-date=18 February 2016 | author=Van der Merwe, Marelise}}{{cite web | url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/uct-starting-to-pick-up-the-pieces-after-a-day-of-rioting-20160217 | title=UCT starting to pick up the pieces after a day of rioting | website=News24 | date=17 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | author=Tandwa, Lizeka}}

The University of Cape Town stated that the shortage, 6,680 beds for 27,000 students, was due to three reasons: greatly increased student numbers caused by lower fees, students rewriting deferred exams caused by the protests the previous year, and the clearance of historical student debt increasing the number of returning students. The university also stated that their ability to respond to the housing problem was hampered by the occupation of three buildings hosting the Student Housing department by Rhodes Must Fall protesters. The university also refuted protesters' claims of prioritising the housing of white students, stating that 75% of students in university residences were black. The university claimed that a number of the protesters were not university students and that due to the "intimidation of others, demeaning utterances, and distortion of facts" it was taking criminal action against the protesters.{{cite web | url=http://www.politicsweb.co.za/politics/why-weve-brought-charges-against-rmf-members--uct | title=Why we've brought charges against RMF members - UCT | publisher=University of Cape Town | date=16 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016 | author=Petersen, Francis}}{{cite news|title=UCT condemns RMF's vandalism and violence|url=http://www.politicsweb.co.za/politics/uct-condemns-rmfs-vandalism-and-violence|work=PoliticsWeb|date=16 February 2016}} Eight protesters were arrested on charges of public violence and malicious damage.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/uct-students-held-after-protest-chaos-1985571 | title=UCT students held after protest chaos | newspaper=Cape Argus | date=17 February 2016 | access-date=17 February 2016}}

In the same week, non-black students were also barred from the UCT residences' dining hall by Rhodes Must Fall protesters and denied food from the cafeteria.{{cite web| url=http://city-press.news24.com/News/students-question-rhodesmustfall-20160220 |title=Students question #RhodesMustFall |date=21 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Huisman, Biénne}}

Similar protests erupted across South Africa during February 2016 with protests at North-West University, University of the Free State, University of Witwatersrand, University of Pretoria, and the University of KwaZulu-Natal.{{cite web | url=http://city-press.news24.com/News/student-protests-a-violent-tug-of-war-20160228 | title=Student protests: A violent tug-of-war | publisher=City Press | date=28 February 2016 | access-date=3 March 2016 | author=Cele, Sthembile}}

Reactions

On 22 March 2015, UCT lecturer Xolela Mangcu told the Cape Times newspaper that the university was not hiring enough black professors. He said that only 5 out of the 200 senior professors at the university were black.{{cite web|url = http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/uct-refusing-to-hire-black-professors-1.1835691#.VSETMag0WSo|title = UCT refusing to hire black professors|date = 23 March 2015|access-date = 5 April 2015|publisher = IOL News|work = Cape Times|last = Petersen|first = Carlo}} A week later, Julius Malema of the Economic Freedom Fighters agreed that the statue should be removed and that the student protests were against not only the statue, but white supremacy itself. Albie Sachs suggested to "keep him [Rhodes] alive on the campus and force him, even if posthumously, to witness surroundings that tell him and the world that he is now living in a constitutional democracy."{{Cite web |url=http://www.citypress.co.za/columnists/getting-the-last-laugh/ |title=Albie Sachs: 'The Rhodes debate: How we can have the last laugh'. In: CityPress, 29 March 2015 |access-date=10 April 2015 |archive-date=19 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150419183839/http://www.citypress.co.za/columnists/getting-the-last-laugh/ |url-status=dead }}

During March 2015, the Faculty of Engineering & the Built Environment at the University of Cape Town ran a poll on whether or not the statue should be moved. Out of 2700 students, 1100 students voted. Sixty percent of them were against the removal of the statue, 38% were in favour of its removal and the remaining 2% abstained. However, the poll did not measure strength of opinion. A consensus in the Senate found that many who were against removal did not feel strongly about the issue.{{cite AV media | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWVJnBVnyPc | title=University Assembly: The Rhodes Statue and Transformation | publisher=University of Cape Town | date=26 Mar 2015 | medium=Video | time=1:05:42}}

Apartheid-era president, F. W. de Klerk has criticised the movement, calling the movement a "folly" and the students "full of sound and fury". He argued that Rhodes was "the architect of the Anglo-Boer War that had a disastrous impact on our people, yet the National Party government never thought of removing his name from our history". De Klerk continued on by saying in a letter to The Times that for better or for worse, "Rhodes had made an impact on history, which included the positive contribution of his scholarship scheme."{{cite news|title = FW de Klerk criticises Rhodes statue removal campaign - BBC News| work=BBC News | date=26 December 2015 |url = https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35181303|access-date = 2015-12-27|language = en-GB}}{{cite web|title = Removing statue of Rhodes would be folly, says De Klerk {{!}} The Times|url = https://www.thetimes.com/article/removing-statue-of-rhodes-would-be-folly-says-de-klerk-j68zzlq7dmb|website = The Times| date=26 December 2015 |access-date = 2015-12-27|language = en-GB}}

Members of the governing party ANC criticized the movement. For example, education minister Blade Nzimande accused them of being "ultra-left formations" controlled by the EFF and accused them of having "an anti-ANC government agenda by those who cannot win power through the ballot".{{Cite web|url=https://www.2oceansvibe.com/2016/09/27/the-staggering-stats-on-damage-caused-to-sa-universities-during-the-student-protests/|title=Staggering Stats On The Damage Caused To SA Universities During The Student Protests|access-date=November 29, 2021|date=September 27, 2016}}

Some critics of the movement worried that the focus was on quantity rather than quality of education,{{cite web| url=http://www.fin24.com/Finweek/Opinion/free-education-comes-at-the-cost-of-equality-20160223 |title= Free education comes at the cost of equality |date=23 February 2016 |access-date=27 February 2016 |author=Snodgrass, Lyn}} and that an increase in the number of students accepted to universities would have led to a decrease in the quality of their education, as money which would have gone towards securing quality educators would have gone instead to subsidising students' fees. Sikhakhane drew parallels between South Africa's path and the situation in Chile and Colombia.{{cite web| url=http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/businesstimes/opinion/2016/02/21/Higher-education-low-returns |title=Higher education, low returns |date=21 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Sikhakhane, Jabulani}}

The university protests were criticised for their increasingly violent nature and their racism against non-black students, especially their "extreme hatred of whites".{{cite web | url=http://www.thesouthafrican.com/uct-student-says-there-is-an-extreme-hatred-of-whites/ | title=UCT student says there is an extreme hatred of whites | publisher=The South African | date=18 February 2016 | access-date=18 February 2016}} Some black students claimed they feared retribution if they did not support the protests.

Other universities

The start of the movement at the University of Cape Town resulted in the emergence of a broader movement in other universities in South Africa, United Kingdom and the United States to address black alienation within higher education.{{Cite web|date=2021-01-14|title='Colonialism had never really ended': my life in the shadow of Cecil Rhodes|url=http://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/jan/14/rhodes-must-fall-oxford-colonialism-zimbabwe-simukai-chigudu|access-date=2022-01-18|website=The Guardian|language=en}}

=Stellenbosch University=

In mid April 2015, the student- and staff-led activist organisation Open Stellenbosch was founded at the University of Stellenbosch to promote similar aims, but with more of a focus on the role of language—specifically Afrikaans—in education at the university. The organisation was inspired by the Rhodes Must Fall movement at the University of Cape Town.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/western-cape/transformation-spotlight-on-stellenbosch-1.1846961#.VTS49NyUfCs | title=Transformation spotlight on Stellenbosch | work=Cape Times | date=17 April 2015 | access-date=20 April 2015 | author=Petersen, Carlo}} Four independent University of Cape Town students produced a short video documentary called Luister in which students attending Stellenbosch and Elsenburg College explained their experiences of racism and slow transformation at the university and the college.{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF3rTBQTQk4 | title=Luister Documentary | website=YouTube | date=20 August 2015}}{{cite web | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/luister-south-africa-film-racism-stellenbosch | title=Luister: the viral film exposing South Africa's ongoing racism problem | work=The Guardian | author=Nicolson, Greg | date=7 September 2015}} On 12 November 2015, the University of Stellenbosch's Rector's Management Team recommended a new language policy in line with Open Stellenbosch's demands; specifically the adoption of English as a lingua franca.{{cite web|last1=De Villiers|first1=Wim|title=Professor|url=http://www.politicsweb.co.za/documents/stellenbosch-university-will-be-anglicised--wim-de|website=politicsweb|access-date=17 November 2015}}

=Rhodes University=

At Rhodes University, the Black Students Movement was started on 17 March in solidarity with the UCT Rhodes Must Fall Movement. The movement then began agitating for the name of Rhodes University to change, and has since made several interventions towards transforming Rhodes University, which it regards as a colonial university. In late May 2015, following protests and complaints by the Black Students Movement, the university, Rhodes University (named after Cecil Rhodes) approved plans to formally begin the process of changing the university's name.{{cite web | url=http://www.sabreakingnews.co.za/2015/06/01/rhodes-uni-council-approves-plans-for-name-change/ | title=Rhodes Uni Council approves plans for name change | publisher=SA Breaking News | access-date=1 June 2015 | author=Ispas, Mara}}

In 2017, the Rhodes University Council voted 15–9 in favour of keeping the existing name.[https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2017-12-06-name-change-for-rhodes-university-rejected/ Name change for Rhodes University rejected], Times Live[https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/national/education/2017-12-06-rhodes-university-votes-to-keep-its-name/ Rhodes University votes to keep its name], Business Live While the university agreed with critics that "[it] cannot be disputed that Cecil John Rhodes was an arch-imperialist and white supremacist who treated people of this region as sub-human", it also said it had long since distanced itself from the person and had distinguished itself with the name Rhodes University as one of the world's best. The main argument against the change was financial, as such a change would cost a significant amount of money and the university was already having trouble with its budget. Furthermore, changing the university's name could have an adverse effect on its recognition internationally.[https://mg.co.za/article/2017-12-06-no-name-change-for-rhodes-university-following-council-vote No name change for Rhodes University following council vote], Mail & Guardian

=University of Pretoria=

On 19 February 2016, the AfriForum Youth, the Progressive Youth Alliance, and the EFF as well as the Democratic Alliance Student Organization (DASO) met with the university to vote on the removal of Afrikaans as a language of instruction.{{cite web| url=http://ewn.co.za/2016/02/19/Calm-restored-14-arrested-at-UP-student-protest |title=Calm restored, 14 arrested at UP student protest |date=19 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |last1=Bateman |first1=Barry }} Following clashes between students and police, 24 students were arrested for public violence.{{cite web |url=http://www.news24.com/Live/SouthAfrica/News/watch-crowd-supports-up-students-in-court-20160222 |title=Crowd supports UP students and chants, "Down with Afrikaans" |date=22 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016}} The following day, the university announced that the Hatfield and Groenkloof campuses would be closed until the university could ensure the safety of its students and staff.{{cite web| url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/tuks-campuses-closed-until-further-notice-20160219 |title=Tuks campuses closed until further notice |date=20 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Raborife, Mpho}}

On 22 February 2016, the university proposed that its medium of instruction would become English-only.{{cite web| url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/protest-hit-university-of-pretoria-proposes-new-english-language-policy-20160222 |title=Protest-hit University of Pretoria proposes new English language policy |date=22 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016}} Protests against Afrikaans continued, with students boycotting classes and forcing other students out of their lectures. Lectures were cancelled as a result.{{cite web| url=http://ewn.co.za/2016/02/22/Tuks-Lectures-cancelled-as-protests-continue |title=#Tuks: Lectures cancelled as protests continue |date=22 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Kubheka, Thando}}

=University of the Free State=

On 22 February 2016, a group of 35 people consisting of contract workers and students, were arrested at the University of the Free State on charges of contempt of court and illegal gathering.{{cite web| url=http://www.ofm.co.za/article/local-news/180128/ufs-workers-and-students-35-to-spend-night-behind-bars |title= UFS workers and students (35) to spend night behind bars |date=22 February 2016 |access-date=22 February 2016 |author=Steenbok, Mark}}

=Oriel College, University of Oxford, UK=

File:Facade of Oriel College with the Cecil Rhodes Statue magnified.jpg

At the University of Oxford, students called for a statue of Rhodes to be removed from Oriel College, and started a movement at the university to better represent non-white culture in the curriculum as well as to combat racial discrimination and insensitivity.{{cite web | url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/jun/18/oxford-uni-must-decolonise-its-campus-and-curriculum-say-students | title=Oxford Uni must decolonise its campus and curriculum, say students | newspaper=The Guardian | date=18 June 2015 | access-date=22 June 2015 | first=André| last=Rhoden-Paul}}{{cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/oxford-university-students-call-for-greater-racial-sensitivity-at-the-institution-and-say-it-must-be-decolonised-10332118.html | title=Oxford University students call for greater 'racial sensitivity' at the institution and say it must be 'decolonised' | newspaper=The Independent | date=19 June 2015 | access-date=22 June 2015 | author=Ali, Aftab}} Organising members of Rhodes Must Fall in Oxford stated that awareness should be raised at the university about the institution's implication in colonialism and the violence that accompanied it, and that representation of 'black voices' should be improved.{{cite web |url= https://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/thunderer/article4649831.ece | title=The statue of Cecil Rhodes, like that of Saddam, must fall | newspaper=The Times | date=26 December 2015 | access-date=27 December 2015 | first= Chi Chi |last=Shi}}

On 19 January 2016, students at the Oxford Union (a private student debating society, without official endorsement or links to the University of Oxford) voted 245 to 212 in favour of removing the statue of Rhodes.{{cite web | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/12109394/Oxford-Union-backs-motion-to-remove-Cecil-Rhodes-statue.html?sf19264616=1 | title=Oxford Union backs motion to remove Cecil Rhodes statue | newspaper=The Telegraph | date=20 January 2016 | access-date=21 January 2016 | first=Javier| last=Espinoza}} Ultimately, on 29 January 2016, it was announced that the statue would remain; The Telegraph reported that "furious donors threatened to withdraw gifts and bequests worth more than £100 million" if it were removed.{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/12128151/Cecil-Rhodes-statue-to-remain-at-Oxford-University-after-alumni-threatens-to-withdraw-millions.html |title=Cecil Rhodes statue to remain at Oxford University after alumni threaten to withdraw millions |first1= Javier |last1=Espinoza|author2= Gordon Rayner|newspaper=Telegraph |date=29 January 2016 |access-date=2016-01-29}}

File:Rhodes must fall by FJ Morris.jpg

The legacy of Cecil Rhodes at The University of Oxford is far-reaching, as in his will Rhodes established The Rhodes Scholarships. Each year, some 100 international students are selected to study at Oxford under the scholarship that bears Rhodes' name. This scholarship is regarded as one of the most prestigious scholarships in the world.{{Cite news|first=Richard |last=Adams |date=2018-02-19|title=Rhodes scholarships opened up to students from UK and rest of world|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/feb/19/rhodes-scholarships-opened-up-to-students-from-uk-and-rest-of-world|access-date=2020-06-18|issn=0261-3077}} When some of those in receipt of the scholarship were challenged over their opposition to iconography of Rhodes in Oxford, they commented "this scholarship does not buy our silence" and claimed that "...there is no hypocrisy in being a recipient of a Rhodes scholarship and being publicly critical of Cecil Rhodes and his legacy". This followed a number of criticisms by British media outlets, and on social media, against the scholarship holders Ntokozo Qwabe{{Cite web|date=2015-12-30|title=The Oxford student who turned on his own university is 'tired' of being asked why he goes there|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/ntokozo-qwabe-student-who-accused-oxford-of-propping-up-existence-of-systemic-racism-says-he-is-a6790991.html|access-date=2020-06-18|website=The Independent|language=en}} and Joshua Nott{{Cite news|date=2017-01-24|title=Anti-Rhodes activist turns Rhodes scholar|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38734725|access-date=2020-06-18}} in response to their involvement in the movement. The students commented that "...a wave of ad hominem and unfounded accusations, hate speech and racism have flooded social media, the press and indeed Ntokozo's personal inbox.".{{cite news |last1=Khomami |first1=Nadia |title=Oxford scholars reject hypocrisy claims amid row over Cecil Rhodes statue |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/jan/12/cecil-rhodes-scholars-reject-hypocrisy-claims-amid-row-over-oriel-college-statue |access-date=1 September 2018 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=13 January 2016}}

In June 2020, the issue was again brought to attention during the George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom.{{Cite web|date=June 9, 2020|title=Mayor Sadiq Khan sets up body to review statues in UK capital|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/mayor-sadiq-khan-sets-up-body-to-review-statues-in-uk-capital/articleshow/76286736.cms|access-date=2020-06-11|website=The Times of India|language=en}} Two large Rhodes Must Fall protests took place outside Oriel College, on High Street in central Oxford to call for the removal of the Rhodes statue from the Oriel building. The first protest occurred on 9 June 2020 and was attended by over 1000 people.{{Cite news|last=Mohdin|first=Aamna|date=2020-06-09|title=Protesters rally in Oxford for removal of Cecil Rhodes statue|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/09/protesters-rally-in-oxford-for-removal-of-cecil-rhodes-statue|access-date=2020-06-17|issn=0261-3077}} The second protest occurred on the 16th of June and was a march from Cowley, a nearby suburb of Oxford, through to the Oriel College building on High Street and onto the University of Oxford Museum of Natural History.{{Cite web|title=PICTURES: Black Lives Matter protest in Oxford yesterday|url=https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18522398.black-lives-matter-protest-oxford/|access-date=2020-06-17|website=Oxford Mail|date=17 June 2020 |language=en}} Both protests were peaceful. On 17 June 2020, some University of Oxford professors expressed opinions in support of the Rhodes Must Fall movement at Oxford. In particular, within a letter to The Telegraph, they criticised the University of Oxford Vice-Chancellor Louise Richardson for claims she made concerning the Rhodes Must Fall movement engaging in the 'hiding of history'.{{Cite news|date=2020-06-17|title=Letters: The Rhodes Must Fall campaign follows the ideals of Nelson Mandela|language=en-GB|work=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2020/06/16/lettersthe-rhodes-must-fall-campaign-follows-ideals-nelson-mandela/|access-date=2020-06-17|issn=0307-1235}} In response to this, meetings of Oriel College undergraduates, the Oriel junior common room (JCR), and the Oriel graduates, the Oriel middle common room (MCR), each passed motions calling for the removal of the statue.{{Cite web|date=2020-06-16|title=Oriel MCR pass motions endorsing the removal of Rhodes statue|url=https://www.oxfordstudent.com/2020/06/16/breaking-oriel-mcr-pass-motions-endorsing-the-removal-of-rhodes-statue/|access-date=2020-06-17|website=The Oxford Student|language=en-GB}} On 17 June 2020, the Oriel College Governing Body convened to vote on the possible removal of the Rhodes statue. The outcome of this meeting was that the college would formally move to have the Cecil Rhodes statue removed from their building, along with the King Edward Street Plaque.{{Cite news|last=Tominey|first=Camilla|date=2020-06-17|title=Cecil Rhodes statue to be taken down at Oxford's Oriel College|language=en-GB|work=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/06/17/cecil-rhodes-statue-taken-oxfords-oriel-college/|access-date=2020-06-18|issn=0307-1235}} The announcement was not for the immediate removal of the statue, but rather that the college move to immediately establish an 'independent Commission of Inquiry into the key issues surrounding the Rhodes statue', and that the submission from the College Governing Body to this commission would be for the removal of the Rhodes statue and plaque.{{Cite web|date=17 June 2020|title=Statement from the Governing Body of Oriel College|url=https://www.oriel.ox.ac.uk/about-college/news-events/news/statement-governing-body-oriel-college|access-date=18 June 2020|website=Oriel College, Oxford}} The commission will be led by Carole Souter CBE, the current Master of St Cross College, Oxford and it was announced that the commission will accept written and oral evidence from all stakeholders including activist groups such as Rhodes Must Fall, and the general public. The Commission intends to report by the end of 2020. Councillor Susan Brown, Leader of Oxford City Council, welcomed this announcement and invited an 'early submission of a formal planning application from Oriel to accompany the review process and feed into it'.{{Cite web|title=Statement on Rhodes statue|url=https://www.oxford.gov.uk/news/article/1464/statement_on_rhodes_statue|access-date=2020-06-18|website=www.oxford.gov.uk|language=en}} Should Oriel College submit a planning application for the removal of the statue from what the college refers to as 'The Rhodes Building' listed building consent and the permission from Historic England will be required, as the building is grade II* listed.{{Cite web|title=THE RHODES BUILDING (NORTH RANGE), ORIEL COLLEGE|url=https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1046662|access-date=16 June 2020|website=Historic England}}

The possible removal of the Rhodes statue at Oriel College follows a 2016 YouGov survey in Britain which reported that 59% of respondents agreed that Rhode's statue should not be taken down, and 44% agreed with the statement that "we should be proud of British colonialism".{{Cite web|url=https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2016/01/18/rhodes-must-not-fall|title=Rhodes must not fall | YouGov|website=yougov.co.uk}}

In June 2020, international lawyer Ann Olivarius, a former Rhodes Scholar, wrote an op-ed in The Financial Times advocating replacing the Cecil Rhodes statue with two other Rhodes Scholars, Alain Locke, the first African-American scholar and Zambian human rights advocate Lucy Banda-Sichone.Ann Olivarius, "[https://www.ft.com/content/336d57a8-fb23-4ec8-8333-bb8e6bc36c98 Rhodes must fall, but who should stand in his place?]," Financial Times 15 June 2020. That same month, the governing body of Oxford's Oriel college voted to remove the statue of Rhodes.{{cite web |title=Rhodes will fall: Oxford University to remove statue amid anti-racism calls |access-date=15 July 2020|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/rhodes-will-fall-oxford-university-remove-statue-amid-anti-racism-n1231387|date=18 June 2020|author1=Shakib, Delara|author2=Givetash, Linda|website=NBC News }} Later that month, a blog article in the London Review of Books by academic Natalya Din-Kariuki suggested that though Rhodes Must Fall had made a good start, anti-racist organising in UK higher education had much further to go.{{Cite web|last=Din-Kariuki|first=Natalya|date=2020-06-29|title=After Rhodes Falls |url=https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2020/june/after-rhodes-falls|access-date=2021-06-07|website=LRB Blog|language=en}} In May 2021, sculptor Antony Gormley suggested not taking the statue down but turning it around, so that it would face the wall.{{Cite web|date=2021-05-29|title=Oxford Rhodes statue should be turned to face wall, says Antony Gormley|url=http://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/may/29/rhodes-statue-should-be-turned-to-face-wall-says-antony-gormley|access-date=2021-05-29|website=The Guardian|language=en}}

= Harvard Law School, US =

In Fall 2015 a group of law students calling itself Royall Must Fall and inspired by Rhodes Must Fall called for the retirement of the Harvard Law School shield, publishing an open letter to law school dean Martha Minow in the Harvard Law Record and posting signs and posters throughout the campus.{{Cite web|url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/11/2/harvard-law-seal-change/|title=At Harvard Law School, Students Call for Change of Seal {{!}} News {{!}} The Harvard Crimson|website=www.thecrimson.com|language=en|access-date=2018-02-09}}{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2015/11/an-open-letter-to-dean-minow-from-students-of-harvard-law-school-royall-must-fall/|title=An Open Letter to Dean Minow from Students of Harvard Law School: Royall Must Fall {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-07}}{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2015/11/slave-owning-slave-trading-murderers-students-call-on-harvard-law-school-to-address-historical-ties-to-slavery/|title="Slave-Owning, Slave-Trading Murderers": Students Call on Harvard Law School to Address Historical Ties to Slavery|last=Rennix|first=Brianna|date=12 November 2015}} Depicting three wheat sheaves, the shield incorporated the coat of arms of Isaac Royall Jr., a Harvard benefactor who had endowed the law school's first professorship.{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/harvard-law-students-urge-removal-of-slaveholder-reference-from-school-seal-1446596231|title=Harvard Law Students Urge Removal of Slaveholder Reference From School Seal|last=Gershman|first=Jacob|date=2015-11-04|work=Wall Street Journal|access-date=2018-02-07|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660}} The shield had become a source of contention among Royall Must Fall activists because of the Royall family's history as slave-owners.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/03/14/harvard-law-school-ditch-controversial-shield-with-elements-from-slave-owning-family/UIYgbyviFdwwGKjexZgWqN/story.html|title=Harvard Law School to ditch controversial shield with elements from slave-owning family - The Boston Globe|work=BostonGlobe.com|access-date=2018-02-07}}{{cite journal | url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2332649218784731 | doi=10.1177/2332649218784731 | title=Royall Must Fall: Old and New Battles on the Memory of Slavery in New England | date=2019 | last1=Beeman | first1=Angie | journal=Sociology of Race and Ethnicity | volume=5 | issue=3 | pages=326–339 | url-access=subscription }}

The movement's inception was accompanied by several controversial incidents, most notably when black tape was mysteriously placed over the portraits of prominent African-American faculty members.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/11/harvard-law-faculty-black-tape/416877/|title=Black Tape Over Black Faculty Portraits at Harvard Law School|last=Graham|first=David|website=The Atlantic |date=19 November 2015}} In addition to spurring several students to express their views about the incident in an "#HLSUntaped" feature in the law school's student newspaper and at on-campus assemblies, the controversy soon eclipsed the law school and garnered university-wide interest, with several articles published in The Harvard Crimson and with some Harvard undergraduates joining protesting law students in solidarity.{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/tag/hlsuntaped/|title=#HLSUntaped {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|date=11 December 2015 |language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-09}} Several national news organisations picked up on the controversy as well.{{Cite news|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/harvard-law-schools-has-the-seal-of-a-slave-owner-as-the-official-crest-2015-11|title=Harvard Law School was built using a 'brutal' slaveowner's money, and students are starting to protest|work=Business Insider|access-date=2018-02-09|language=en}}

After the shield was ordered retired on 15 March 2016, Royall Must Fall renamed itself Reclaim Harvard Law and broadened its focus.{{Cite web|url=https://reclaimharvardlaw.wordpress.com/|title=Reclaim Harvard Law School|website=Reclaim Harvard Law School|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-07}} Prominent members of Reclaim included third-year student A.J. Clayborne, but the group was organised in an equitable manner to counteract the perceived hierarchical nature of Harvard Law School. Reclaim sparked controversy when it occupied the law school's lounge and renamed it Belinda Hall after Belinda Sutton, a female slave who was enslaved by the Royall family.{{Cite web|url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2016/3/4/raymond-belinda-hall-protest/|title=Why I'm Sleeping in Belinda Hall |website=www.thecrimson.com|first=Jordan |last=Raymond|date=4 March 2016|language=en|access-date=2018-02-09}}{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/02/activists-occupy-student-lounge/|title=Reclaim HLS Activists Occupy Student Lounge {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-09}} After conservative students placed posters in the occupied lounge that were then torn down by students from Reclaim, Dean Martha Minow reaffirmed the school's commitment to free speech in an email to the student body and in the school's student newspaper.{{Cite web|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/bench-memos/433561/free-speech-harvard-law|title=The Sorry State of Free Speech at Harvard Law|last=Whelan|first=Ed|website=National Review |date=1 April 2016|access-date=7 February 2018}} This and other incidents sparked an on-campus debate in Spring 2016 about whether free speech could undermine social justice. As part of the debate, the Harvard Law Record's editor-in-chief and third-year law student Michael Shammas faced criticism from right-wing students for refusing to publish videos of activists tearing down pro-free speech posters, as well as criticism from some left-wing activists for accepting conservative op-eds for publication.{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/04/harvard-law-students-allow-me-to-say-something-controversial-you-might-be-wrong/|title=Harvard Law Students, Allow Me to Say Something Controversial: You Might Be Wrong|last=Shammas|first=Michael|date=4 April 2016}} Shammas, who was politically liberal, noted that even though he supported anti-racist protesters, his role was "editor-in-chief, not thought-policeman-in-chief."{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2015/12/a-note-from-the-editor-in-chief-why-i-dont-censor-conservative-articles/|title=A Note from the Editor-in-Chief: Why I Don't Censor Conservative Articles {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-07}} Prominent Harvard Law professors such as Duncan Kennedy, Annette Gordon-Reed,{{cite news|first1=Randall|last1=Kennedy|access-date=2020-06-10|series=Opinion |title= Black Tape at Harvard Law|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/27/opinion/black-tape-at-harvard-law.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=27 November 2015|issn=0362-4331|via=NYTimes.com}} Randall Kennedy, and Scott Brewer also weighed in, including in national newspapers such as The New York Times.{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/04/can-there-be-a-principled-defense-of-tearing-down-posters-in-belinda-hall/|title=Can There Be a "Principled" Defense of Tearing Down Posters in Belinda Hall? {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-09}}{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/04/the-academy-and-the-virtue-of-contest/|title=The Academy and the Virtue of Contest {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-09}}

The effects of the Royall Must Fall and Reclaim Harvard Law continue to be felt on the law school campus today. In September 2017, the school unveiled a plaque acknowledging slavery's role in its history, which reads, "May we pursue the highest ideals of law and justice in their memory." {{Cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/09/08/harvard-law-school-unveils-plaque-acknowledge-slave-labor/IHVNzT0fmEk9ezdZhnLqDI/story.html|title=Harvard Law School unveils plaque to acknowledge slave labor - The Boston Globe|work=BostonGlobe.com|access-date=2018-02-07}} The controversies that occurred over the 2015-2016 year are recounted from a conservative perspective in a book by Kayleigh McEnany, a prominent conservative and former Trump spokeswoman who was a third-year law student at the time.{{Cite book|title=The New American Revolution: The Making of a Populist Movement|last1=McEnany|first1=Kayleigh|last2=Hannity|first2=Sean|date=2018-01-09|publisher=Threshold Editions|isbn=9781501179686|language=en}} McEnany's view of the controversy, in which she is critical of the protesters, differs from many expressed at the time. Indeed, some students who defended free speech during the controversy nonetheless wrote that they suspected that some on-campus conservatives may have rallied around free speech as a way to fight Reclaim's aims while hiding their own racism.{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/04/harvard-law-students-allow-me-to-say-something-controversial-you-might-be-wrong/|title=Harvard Law Students, Allow Me to Say Something Controversial: You Might Be Wrong {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-09}}{{Cite web|url=http://hlrecord.org/2016/04/i-may-be-wrong-but-i-have-something-to-say-post-postergate-reflections/|title="Post-Postergate" Reflections: I may be wrong, but I have something to say {{!}} The Harvard Law Record|website=hlrecord.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-03-07}}

Several articles appeared comparing the Rhodes Must Fall and Royall Must Fall movements, in both positive and negative lights.{{cite web|url=https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/02/rhodes-must-fall-wont-disappear-just-because-they-lost/|title=Rhodes Must Fall campaigners won't disappear just because they lost|first=Tom |last=Leonard|work=Coffee House |date=11 February 2016}}{{cite web|url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/features/must-rhodes-fall|title=Must Rhodes fall?|work=Times Higher Education|date=15 December 2016|first=Jack |last=Grove}}

=Other =

Small student protests in support of or directly inspired by the removal of the statue and the Rhodes Must Fall movement also occurred at the University of Edinburgh{{cite web | url=http://www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/Cape-Town-students-remove-statue-Stortford-s/story-26324511-detail/story.html | title=University students remove statue of Stortford's Cecil Rhodes from campus | work=Herts and Essex Observer | date=13 April 2015 | access-date=20 April 2015 | archive-date=27 April 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150427124849/http://www.hertsandessexobserver.co.uk/Cape-Town-students-remove-statue-Stortford-s/story-26324511-detail/story.html | url-status=dead }} and the University of California, Berkeley.{{cite web | url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/American-students-support-RhodesMustFall-Campaign-20150326 | title=American students support #RhodesMustFall Campaign | publisher=News24 | date=26 March 2015 | access-date=20 April 2015}} Berkeley protesters felt the demands of the Rhodes Must Fall movement were relevant to their own grievances of perceived black marginalisation at Berkeley. At the University of Cambridge the movement catalysed the creation of similar 'decolonisation' student led initiatives such as the return of the okukor cockerel statue (taken during the punitive Benin Expedition of 1897) at Jesus College to Nigeria.{{Cite web|url=http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20160524135416842|title=Decolonising the academy – Towards a global movement?|last=Wamai|first=Njoki|date=27 May 2016|website=The University World News|access-date=30 May 2016}}

Other statues

File:Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr (Onze Jan).jpg in Cape Town being cleaned by a pair of non-protesting volunteers on 11 April 2015]]

On 22 March 2015, the EFF's president, Julius Malema, called for all other symbols of colonialism and apartheid in South Africa to be removed.{{cite news|last1=Gqirana|first1=Thulani|title=Malema declares war on Cape Town's 'apartheid regime'|url=http://mg.co.za/article/2015-03-22-malema-declares-war-on-apartheid-cape-town|access-date=11 April 2015|work=Mail & Guardian}} Following that, a number of colonial era statues across the country were vandalised, including the statue of King George V at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.{{cite web | url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/ukzn-statue-row-rages-on-1.1838072#.VSMfTvmUd-4 | title=UKZN statue row rages on | work=Daily News | date=27 March 2015 | access-date=7 April 2015 | first1=Sihle | last1=Mlambo | first2=Mpathi| last2=Nxumalo}} EFF members were implicated in the vandalism of a number of Second Boer War statues, including that on 4 April of the Uitenhage War memorial statue for fallen British troops,{{cite web | url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/War-memorial-statue-in-Uitenhage-set-alight-20150402 | title=War memorial statue in Uitenhage 'necklaced' | publisher=News24 | date=4 April 2015 | access-date=7 April 2015 | first=Derrick| last=Spies}} a 6 April attack on the Horse Memorial in Port Elizabeth dedicated to the animals that served in the war,{{cite web | url=http://www.heraldlive.co.za/eff-members-dismantled-horse-memorial/ | title=EFF members dismantles Horse Memorial | work=Port Elizabeth Herald | date=6 April 2015 | access-date=7 April 2015 | first=Dorette | last=De Swart | archive-date=10 April 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150410011602/http://www.heraldlive.co.za/eff-members-dismantled-horse-memorial/ | url-status=dead }} and the 7 April vandalism, with green paint, of Paul Kruger's statue in Church Square, Pretoria.{{cite web | url=http://www.timeslive.co.za/thetimes/2015/04/07/statue-wars-heat-up | title=Statue wars heat up | work=Times Live | date=7 April 2015 | access-date=7 April 2015 | first1=Sipho | last1=Masombuka | first2=Mkhululi| last2=Ndamase}} The statue of Louis Botha situated outside the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town was vandalised on 9 April.{{cite web|url = http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/2015/04/09/louis-botha-statue-vandalised|title = Louis Botha statue vandalised|date = 9 April 2015|access-date = 10 April 2015|website = BDlive|publisher = RDM News Wire|last = Capazorio|first = Bianca}}

EFF spokesperson Mbuyeseni Ndlozi said on 9 April that the party would have to take responsibility for its members' actions, but that the EFF was for the removal, not vandalism or destruction, of colonial and apartheid symbols in the public space.{{cite web|title=Newsroom 9 April SABC| date=9 April 2015 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BGxQ4ahGDE|via=YouTube|publisher=SABC|access-date=11 April 2015}}

In response to the vandalism of the Louis Botha Statue and Horse Memorial, local supporters of the monuments laid wreaths at the monuments a few days afterwards. To protect it from future vandalism, the Horse Memorial was temporarily moved to a safe space by the local municipality. The chairperson of the Nelson Mandela Bay region of the EFF, Bo Madwara, threatened to "unload it into the sea" should the monument be restored.{{cite web | url=http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/Tributes-laid-at-vandalised-horse-memorial-20150408 | title=Tributes laid at vandalised horse memorial | publisher=News 24 | date=8 April 2015 | access-date=7 June 2015 | author=Spies, Derrick}}

On 18 September 2015, the bronze bust of Rhodes at Rhodes Memorial was vandalised. The nose was cut off and the memorial was daubed with graffiti accusing Rhodes of being a "Racist, thief, [and] murderer". It appeared that the vandals had attempted to cut off the whole head.{{cite news |last1=Cronje |first1=Jan |title=Mystery of Rhodes' missing nose |url=https://www.iol.co.za/news/mystery-of-rhodes-missing-nose-1918649#.VgAZRhGqpBc |access-date=2019-06-30|work=Weekend Argus|publisher=IOL |date=2015-09-20}} In October 2018, the nose was restored by a local artist.

File:RMF Louis Botha 01.jpg|Louis Botha statue, Cape Town

File:Krugerstandbeeld, Kerkplein, a, Pretoria.jpg|Paul Kruger statue, Pretoria (2013)

File:Close-up of the Horse Memorial, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.jpg|Horse Memorial, Port Elizabeth (2010)

File:Rhodes no nose.JPG|The defaced Rhodes bronze bust at the Rhodes memorial, Cape Town. Note the missing nose. (2015)

Controversies over Rhodes Scholars who are Rhodes Must Fall activists

Ntokozo Qwabe, one of the founders of Rhodes Must Fall and a Rhodes Scholar, was the subject of controversy over seemingly racist comments towards a white waitress in South Africa. For this he was widely criticised in the UK{{cite news|url=http://metro.co.uk/2016/05/19/oxford-student-doesnt-regret-making-white-girl-waitress-cry-5891976/ |title=Oxford student doesn't regret making 'white girl' waitress cry|first= Harley |last=Tamplin|newspaper=Metro|date= 19 May 2016|access-date= 17 May 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/rhodes-must-fall-campaigner-ntokozo-qwabe-oxford-university-claims-cape-town-waitress-white-tears-a7037911.html|title= Oxford student who refused to tip waitress claims his comments 'weren't personal'|first= Matt |last=Payton|newspaper=The Independent|date= 19 May 2016|access-date= 17 May 2018}} and in South Africa.{{cite news|url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/anc-weighs-in-on-rmf-activist-tip-saga-2016468|title= ANC weighs in on RMF activist tip saga|first= Carla |last=Bernardo|work=IOL|date= 2 May 2016|access-date= 17 May 2018}} A few days after the November 2015 Paris attacks Qwabe also caused controversy comparing the French flag to the Nazi flag and calling for it to be banned from universities.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/oxford-law-student-ntokozo-qwabe-calls-for-universities-to-ban-french-flag-after-paris-attacks-a6788206.html|title= Oxford law student Ntokozo Qwabe calls for universities to ban French flag after Paris attacks, comparing it to 'Nazi flag'|first= Aftab |last=Ali|newspaper=The Independent|date= 28 December 2015|access-date= 17 May 2018}}{{cite news|url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/oxford-student-ntokozo-qwabe-demands-tricolour-ban-claiming-france-has-committed-acts-terror-1535047 |title=Oxford student Ntokozo Qwabe demands tricolour ban claiming France has committed 'acts of terror'|first= John |last=Hall|newspaper=International Business Times|date= 27 December 2015|access-date= 17 May 2018}}{{cite news|url=http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/article1649494.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604230303/http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/article1649494.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 June 2016 |title=After Rhodes he wants to tear down tricolore| first=Oliver|last= Thring|newspaper=The Sunday Times|date= 27 December 2015|access-date= 17 May 2018}}

Joshua Nott, a former publicist for Rhodes Must Fall, was accused of hypocrisy, including by Rhodes Must Fall, over subsequently applying for and accepting a Rhodes Scholarship. The Rhodes Trust was criticised for not awarding the scholarship to someone more deserving.{{cite magazine|url=https://time.com/4648306/cecil-rhodes-scholar-joshua-nott-activist-statue/ |title=An Activist Who Campaigned Against Cecil Rhodes Just Accepted a $50,000 Rhodes Scholarship|magazine=Time|date= 25 January 2017|access-date= 17 May 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2017/01/23/rhodes-must-fall-activist-accepts-40000-rhodes-bursary-study/|title= Rhodes Must Fall activist accepts £40,000 Rhodes bursary to study at Oxford|first= Harry |last=Yorke|newspaper=The Telegraph|date= 23 January 2017|access-date= 17 May 2018}} Following the completion of his studies at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, Nott took up a position of paid employment at the Rhodes Trust. He is employed as 'Associate - Global Partnerships' within the Trust's Rise programme.{{Cite web|title=Rhodes House Staff - Rhodes Trust|url=http://www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk/|access-date=2020-06-24|website=Rhodes House - Home of The Rhodes Scholarships|language=en}}