Black Lives Matter

The statue of Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville  (by sculptor John Steell), situated in the centre of Melville Crescent, Edinburgh has been defaced with graffiti “Son of Slaver and Colonialist Profiteer” 
Robert Dundas was an MP for Midlothian, a governor of the Bank of Scotland, Keeper of the Signet and eldest son of Henry Dundas, whose monument sits in St Andrew Square. 
In June 2020 there was a petition raised to remove the statue of Henry Dundas, the First Viscount Melville, from St Andrew's square and leave the empty column with a plaque that can educate people on his, and Edinburgh’s involvement in the slave trade. The petition also called for the renaming of Dundas Street, Melville Street, and Melville Crescent in Edinburgh and have them named after Joseph Knight, a Scottish-Jamaican slave who won a court case and then an appeal in 1778 to free himself, by proving that slavery didn't exist in Scots Law.  The petition stated that its purpose is to rectify Dundas Senior’s fallacious reputation and denounce his involvement in the slave trade during the 18th century. He was solely responsible for delaying the abolition of slavery in 1792, causing another 15 years of people being kidnapped, shipped to, and enslaved in Britain (that's around 630,000 more people) from which he directly benefited from.
He was also impeached for the misappropriation of public money (around £15,000,000) and is the only person ever to be accused of such a serious crime and later have a public statue erected to honour their memory.
The petition further stated that the statue in St Andrew's Square and various streets named after him falsely glorify Henry Dundas and suggest that he has a respectable legacy and should be idolised.
Subsequently it was agreed that a revised plaque be erected beside the Melville Statue in St Andrew Square narrating a more balanced view as to Henry Dundas' achievements and links to slavery.