Boris Johnson has used a series of tweets to speak out against the removal of statues and to urge Black Lives Matter activists not to protest this weekend. Here is some context to his comments. The statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square is a permanent reminder of his achievement in saving this country – and the whole of Europe – from a fascist and racist tyranny. It is absurd and shameful that this national monument should today be at risk of attack by violent protesters. Yes, he sometimes expressed opinions that were and are unacceptable to us today, but he was a hero, and he fully deserves his memorial. While the idea of Churchill as a lone political figure standing up against prewar appeasement has become somewhat mythologised – not least by Churchill himself in his own books – there is no doubt he played a central role in Britain’s wartime destiny, and remains a hero to many Britons, regularly topping polls of most revered prime ministers. Johnson has himself written a biography of Churchill that sold well, if the critical reaction was sometimes mixed, and so has a very obvious personal stake in the argument – particularly as many reviews felt that Johnson was trying to liken his own career to that of his hero. Nonetheless, there were episodes in Churchill’s life that remain hugely controversial; for example his role in the 1943 Bengal famine, which killed up to 3 million people and has been blamed on policy failures rather than drought. Churchill also undoubtedly expressed racist views, for example justifying colonial exploits as “a higher-grade race” subjugating natives. He also expressed eugenicist opinions, supporting the idea that the “feeble-minded” should be sterilised. Defenders of Churchill say that he was not unique in his era in expressing such views. However, nor were they ubiquitous at the time. We cannot now try to edit or censor our past. We cannot pretend to have a different history. The statues in our cities and towns were put up by previous generations. They had different perspectives, different understandings of right and wrong. But those statues teach us about our past, with all its faults. To tear them down would be to lie about our history, and impoverish the education of generations to come. This appears to be a vehement argument against removing any statues, by whatever means, whether by spontaneous group action, as with the toppling of the statue honouring slave-trader Edward Colston in Bristol, or by official means; for example, the decision to remove a statue of Robert Milligan, another slave-owner, from London’s Docklands. It is not, however, completely clear whether this is what the prime minister meant. Asked whether he did intend this, Johnson’s spokesman said his tweets “speak for themselves” but pointed reporters to this section. However, the spokesman also noted that Johnson had talked previously about people “using democratic processes for this sort of thing” as the way forwards. The slightly confused message feeds into a febrile national atmosphere in which the removal of Colston’s statue has seen a wave of demands for other monuments to be taken down, including those honouring the imperialist merchant Cecil Rhodes, as well as Sir Francis Drake, William Gladstone and Thomas Guy, the founder of Guy’s hospital in London. This has prompted anguish from Conservative MPs and others, who have said statues must be seen in their historical context. As for the planned demonstrations, we all understand the legitimate feelings of outrage at what happened in Minnesota and the legitimate desire to protest against discrimination. Whatever progress this country has made in fighting racism - and it has been huge - we all recognise that there is much more work to do. This is a repeat of sentiments Johnson has expressed several times in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. The prime minister has expressed in the broadest terms his concern at Floyd’s death, after a police officer now charged with murder knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes. However, Johnson has avoided criticising President Donald Trump for his divisive and militaristic response to US protests in the wake of Floyd’s death. He has also not followed the Labour leader, Keir Starmer, in posing on one knee as a sign of support for the Black Lives Matter protests. It is also notable the PM has not - as yet – suggested any practical means by which more could be done to tackle racism in the UK. Asked following the tweets if Johnson had any plans in this regard, his spokesman talked only of general aims. “The PM has been clear in his views, and his central plan to level up across the country and to ensure equality for everyone still remains.” Asked how this might happen, the spokesman repeated the answer. But it is clear that the protests have been sadly hijacked by extremists intent on violence. The attacks on the police and indiscriminate acts of violence which we have witnessed over the last week are intolerable and they are abhorrent. The only responsible course of action is to stay away from these protests. A number of ministers have condemned violent incidents at last weekend’s Black Lives Matter demonstrations, in which 35 police were injured, and protesters were were charged with horses and “kettled” – penned into a small space. The government has repeatedly urged people to stay away from all protests, primarily to avoid the spread of the coronavirus among people packed together. Under Covid-19 regulations, even outdoors, gatherings of more than six people are not permitted. Ministers are reportedly planning to introduce a “fast-track” approach to offences at such protests, in which people could be convicted within 24 hours. Black Lives Matter have cancelled their planned London demonstrations for the weekend, urging supporters to stay away. This is primarily for their own safety, given that a series of far-right groups, including ones associated with the anti-Islam activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, who calls himself Tommy Robinson, have pledged to stage their own protest in Westminster. While Johnson does not address the planned far-right actions in his tweets, his spokesman said that the call to stay away from protests also applied to this group. • This article was amended on 15 June 2020. An earlier version incorrectly referred to Thomas Guy as “Sir Thomas Guy”.