Banksy‘s newest mural, portraying a judge beating a protestor lying on the ground with a gavel, quickly drew attention after it was painted on an outer wall of the Royal Courts of Justice in London on September 8.
The black and white stenciled image featured a red spatter mark on the protestor’s sign resembling blood. It was painted on a courts complex “considered one of the most secure locations in Britain”, according to the New York Times. Soon after Banksy posted images of the mural to his Instagram account, the piece was covered over and guarded by security officers.
On the morning of September 10, the latest work by the artist was gone after a masked man was filmed scrubbing the image off the wall. Two police officers stood nearby.
A spokesman for Britain’s Ministry of Justice told the New York Times in an email that the image had been destroyed due to the Royal Courts being a protected building under British heritage laws, and that the court’s service was “obliged to maintain its original character.”
Fans of the artists and locals interviewed by the Guardian said Banksy’s chosen image was a reference to recent arrests at a pro-Palestine protest in London on September 6. Almost 900 people were detained by police during the demonstration against the banning of the protest group, Palestine Action.
The Good Law Project, the legal organization that filmed the mural’s removal and also opposed the ban of Palestine Action, posted images of its removal on social media with the caption: “The court is erasing Banksy’s mural just like it’s erasing our right to protest.” The group went on: “Silencing a work of art about silencing protest? Maybe it was a little too close to home.”
