Vandals post video of Crowther statue being cut down on social media

The moment the statue of William Crowther was cut down was captured on video and shared on social media. See the video.

The moment the statue of William Crowther was removed in Hobart’s Franklin Square was captured on video and circulated on social media.

The controversial statue was lopped at the ankles on Tuesday night, in an act of vandalism, leaving the bulk of the bronze lying in the dirt until morning.

Council workers remove the statue. The William Crowther statue in Franklin Square Hobart has been vandalised overnight resulting in the statue being removed from it's plinth and then removed by Hobart City Council. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Graffitied on the sandstone plinth were the words “WHAT GOES AROUND” and “DECOLONIZE”.

There have long been calls to remove the statue because Crowther, a former Tasmania Premier, is known for mutilating the remains of Aboriginal man William Lanne, stealing his skull and sending it to the Royal College of Surgeons in London.

The William Crowther statue in Franklin Square Hobart has been vandalised overnight resulting in the statue being removed from it's plinth and then removed by Hobart City Council. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Since the removal, close up video of the act was shared on social media.

The video was posted to the Instagram account of a Melbourne-based youth civil resistance group.

The user said the video of the act was sent in anonymously, with a statement.

“On the lands where one of the truest and most brutal attempted genocides was committed against the Tasmanian Aboriginal people, it is unfathomable that the colony would continue to celebrate racist butchers like Crowther whilst continuing to sweep its ongoing colonisation under the rug,” the statement said.

“We can’t erase history, but we can tear down the horrible colonialists who have disgraced it until we wake up to the reality of colonisation on this continent.”

Council workers covering the remainder of the statue. The William Crowther statue in Franklin Square Hobart has been vandalised overnight resulting in the statue being removed from it's plinth and then removed by Hobart City Council. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Tasmania Police is investigating the removal of the statue and a spokesperson said offences relating to property can result in a $1950 fine or up to 12 months in prison.

In 2022, the Hobart City Council voted the statue would be taken down, and last year a development application to physically remove the bronze part of the statue, leaving the plinth behind, was also passed.

It was subsequently appealed by supporters of the statue.

The unauthorised removal of Crowther came one night before a tribunal revealed its verdict to uphold the council’s decision

The removal of the statue has been condemned by some, but praised by others.

Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre campaigner Nala Mansell on Wednesday said the statue should never have been erected in the first place.

Meanwhile those who launched the appeal to keep the monument standing have slammed the vandalism as “appalling”

The trio who are appealed, Jeff Briscoe, Chris Merridew and Anne Burleigh, were given a 30 day window to appeal the outcome.

Mr Briscoe told the Mercury on Wednesday they were considering their options.

Originally published as Vandals post video of Crowther statue being cut down on social media