Ongoing

Stone Mountain Park Memorial in Georgia
#198

Stone Mountain Park Memorial in Georgia

USA

By Contested Histories Initiative

The Stone Mountain Park Memorial is the largest Confederate memorial in the U.S., and the controversy around it demonstrates that the American Civil War’s emancipatory purpose remains contested more than a century-and-a-half after its end. Despite multiple protests, and a gubernatorial campaign running on a platform against the monument’s continued… Read More

Stolpersteine dedicated to the Goldstein and Helbing families
#63

Stumbling Stones in Munich

Germany

By Contested Histories Initiative

Stolpersteine or ‘stumbling stones’ are components of a project initiated by German artist Gunter Demnig in 1996 to commemorate victims of the Holocaust. The memorials, in the form of cobblestones installed in public streets, now number in the tens of thousands across Europe and beyond. However, they have also been… Read More

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Roundabout
#121

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Roundabout in Lahore

Pakistan

By Contested Histories Initiative

Commonly known as Fawara Chowk (Fountain Roundabout), the formal name, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chowk roundabout, has been the source of contestation since 2016. The roundabout is directly adjacent to the former prison where Sikh Marxist-Revolutionary Bhagat Singh was executed in 1931 by the British. Since then, the prison has been… Read More

Old Slave Market in Lagos
#130

Old Slave Market in Lagos

Portugal

By Contested Histories Initiative

Hiding in plain sight in Lagos’ central square lies the Antigo Mercado de Escravos, the Old Slave Market, which hosts a unique museum. The building is situated in the square–formerly a beach–where enslaved people would once have been bought and sold, along with other goods such as ivory and Malagueta… Read More

van Riebeecks wild almond hedge in Cape Town
#139

Van Riebeeck’s Hedge in Cape Town

South Africa

By Contested Histories Initiative

Jan van Riebeeck arrived at Cape of Good Hope in 1652. His mission was to create a station for the Dutch East India Company’s ships. This meant colonising the lands inhabited by the Khoikhoi. To keep them from accessing his land, van Riebeeck planted a wild almond hedge. The hedge… Read More

Jose Miguel Gomez Monument in La Habana
#281

José Miguel Gómez Statue in La Habana

Cuba

By Contested Histories Initiative

José Miguel Gómez was a celebrated military general who led Cuban forces during the wars of independence against Spain in the 19th century and served as Cuba’s second president between 1909 and 1913. The monument was first inaugurated in 1936. The statue has consistently been a source of contention. It… Read More

Jan Pieterszoon Coen Hoorn
#235

Jan Pieterszoon Coen Statue in Hoorn

The Netherlands

By Contested Histories Initiative

Nicknamed the ‘Slaughterer of Banda,’ the figure of Jan Pieterszoon Coen has become increasingly contested in recent years. The statue of Jan Pieterszoon Coen in Hoorn has been a disputed monument since its unveiling in 1893. The statue has been smeared with red paint and graffiti numerous times in the… Read More

Group of Selk'nam People in Traditional Clothing
#31

Selk’nam Genocide Public Commemoration in Punta Arenas

Chile

By Contested Histories Initiative

The late nineteenth century saw the systematic killing of the Selk’nam indigenous group members at the hands of European settlers in Punta Arenas, Chile. Until 2007, the official state narrative surrounding the fate of the Selk’nam failed to recognise the genocidal dynamics underpinning the dramatic decline in their population. Instead,… Read More