Shropshire Star

Shropshire Star comment: Liverpool perfect for sculpture

Liverpool seems a fitting city to receive and display The Knife Angel, which was made at Oswestry’s British Ironwork Centre.

Published
The Knife Angel

For, like many inner city areas, Liverpool has been blighted by high levels of knife crime and has been working to reduce the levels of violence, particularly among young men and women.

Knife crime has become a national scourge and the creation of a Knife Angel was a remarkably good idea. It quite literally turns bad into good, taking knives off our streets and providing art that gives people pause for reflection.

While Liverpool will be a fitting home for the sculpture, there has also been talk that the Knife Angel might make its way to London to rest on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square.

Many would support that. London has suffered more than any other location as knives have become commonplace and children are no longer safe to make their way to and from school, let alone congregate in the evenings.

Memorial

Though the idea has not yet received a final confirmation, there is still ample time for London Mayor Sadiq Khan to pick up the phone and request the sculpture. The fact the sculpture was made from knives donated through police force amnesties is central to the Knife Angel’s appeal.

It is a national monument against violence and aggression while doubling as a memorial to those who have lost their lives to knife crime. While lauding the principles behind its creation, we also ought to pay tribute to the skilled workers at The British Ironwork Centre who created it. They have displayed remarkable levels of skill on a range of projects over many years, none more so than the 27ft structure that appeals for peace in a troubled world.

Here in Shropshire and Mid Wales, there are lower levels of knife crime than in such cities as Liverpool and London, as well as Birmingham and Wolverhampton. Yet knives are still on our streets; a number of suburban areas and market towns are blighted by tearaway gangs who would do others harm.

And so the Knife Angel has a relevance to people locally. Many will be reminded that our streets are relatively safe and we would wish them to be even safer. We do not want the levels of knife crime that London and Liverpool experience in our beautiful county.