Boris Johnson said the anti-racism demonstrations taking place in the United Kingdom have now been “subverted by thuggery”

Boris Johnson said the anti-racism demonstrations taking place in the United Kingdom have now been “subverted by thuggery” after protesters clashed with police in London on Sunday, leaving eight officers injured.

The British prime minister’s comments come as demonstrators also spray-painted “was a racist” on a Winston Churchill monument in Parliament Square, and in Bristol, tore down the statue of a slave trader before throwing it into the harbor.

“People have a right to protest peacefully & while observing social distancing but they have no right to attack the police,” Johnson tweeted. “These demonstrations have been subverted by thuggery — and they are a betrayal of the cause they promise to serve. Those responsible will be held to account.”

Thousands of people throughout the U.K.  took to the streets this weekend to call for police reform and reform following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being handcuffed and assaulted by a white officer in Minneapolis.

The protests were stated to be largely orderly, with a major Sunday rally outside the U.S. embassy in London. But elsewhere in the area, after dark, demonstrators hurled bottles at the Westminster police, according to the BBC.

London Metropolitan Police said the conflict left eight policemen injured and resulted in a few arrests, a day after another 10 policemen were badly hurt in similar protests in London.
In London, on Sunday, a group of protesters used chains to pull down the statue of Edward Colston, a slave owner.

Colston was born in Bristol in the 17th century and earned his fortune through trading. His money came primarily from his Royal African Company, which transported some 100,000 slaves from africa to america.
After the sculpture was torn down, the demonstrators dragged it through the downtown streets to the harbour, where it was thrown into the water. The empty space that the statue had occupied became a site for the protesters to make speeches.
The Bristol Police confirmed to the BBC that there would be an investigation into the vandalism to the statue.

While, the mayor of the town appears to have chosen the position of the demonstrators.