London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, May 31, 2025

Now Charles Darwin gets cancelled: Natural History museum will review 'offensive' exhibitions about the Father of Evolution because HMS Beagle's Galapagos voyage was 'colonialist'

Natural history museum is reviewing its potentially 'offensive' collections in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests. Exhibitions under review include collections by naturalist Charles Darwin on HMS Beagle.

The Natural History museum is conducting a review into potentially 'offensive' collections including its Charles Darwin exhibitions.

In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, museum bosses have ordered an audit into certain collections that some staff believe are 'legacies of colonies, slavery and empire'.

Rooms, statues and collected items in the museum that could be 'problematic' may be renamed, relabelled, or removed.

The review into the museum’s links to slavery and colonialism could result in a potential overhaul of the museum's collections and public spaces.

In documents seen by The Sunday Telegraph, museum staff were told that as a result of the Black Lives Matter protests, the museum would undertake a review of room names, statues and collections that 'could potentially cause offence'.

The executive board of the Natural History museum is said to be 'very engaged' with the issue and circulated an academic paper to staff which claimed 'science, racism, and colonial power were inherently entwined'.

The paper proposes publicly acknowledging the past to create 'less racist' museums.

Collections under review include specimens of exotic birds gathered by naturalist Charles Darwin on his expedition to the Galapagos Island with Captain Robert FitzRoy on HMS Beagle in 1835.

According to the academic paper shared with museum staff, the HMS Beagle was cited as one of Britain's many 'colonialist scientific expeditions'.

It wrote that one of the purposes of the voyage was 'to enable greater British control of those areas'.

The paper also argues that 'museums were put in place to legitimise a racist ideology'.

Other collections that could come under scrutiny by the anti-racist review are specimens gathered by botanist Sir Joseph Banks who sailed with Captain James Cook, as well as items gathered by Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus who thought Africans were 'crafty', 'indolent' and 'negligent'.

The flora collection of Sir Hans Sloane, one of the British Museum's founders, may also come under review.

He was labelled him a ‘slave owner’ by the British Museum in August and his bust was removed from a pedestal.

The ceiling of the main Hintze Hall of the Natural History Museum - where 'Hope', a skeleton of a blue whale is hanging (pictured) - could also be 'problematic' due to paintings of colonial exports such as cotton, tea and tobacco.

A statue of Charles Darwin that sits in the museum's main hall could also come under questioning as well as a statue of scientist Thomas Henry Huxley because of his theories of five 'races' of human.

According to The Sunday Telegraph, Michael Dixon, the director of the Natural History Museum, explained to staff: 'The Black Lives Matter movement has demonstrated that we need to do more and act faster, so as a first step we have commenced an institution-wide review on naming and recognition.

'We want to learn and educate ourselves, recognising that greater understanding and awareness on diversity and inclusion are essential.'

Comments

Justin Wheeler 5 year ago
Anarcho syndicalist/woke cancel-culture is infiltrating vast areas of public organisations, culture and heritage. It's not the job of museum staff to use their personal extremist views, to decide what should or shouldn't be kept in museum displays. They are supposed to be good custodians of their collections, and conserve what they have for future generations. Staff should never promote destroying artifacts or exhibits, because if their personal political beliefs. People who support such uncuratorial actions, should be sacked/removed from public positions of trust.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
Labour MPs Urge Chancellor to Tax Wealthy Over Cutting Welfare
Publication of UK Child Poverty Strategy Delayed Until Autumn
France Detains UK Fishing Vessel Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Calls Grow to Resume Syrian Asylum Claims in UK
Nigel Farage Pledges to Reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
Boris and Carrie Johnson Welcome Daughter Poppy
×