Blog Archives

Faith in Black Lives Matter

12/1/2021

Faith in Black Lives Matter was a conference run by the Faith Network for Manchester that took place via Zoom in November. Here are links to some of the topics it looked at. Thought-provoking, honest and robust content (let the listener understand), but shared in a context of humility and desire to learn and change.

Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome with Paul Obinna
Black Theology with Prof. Anthony G Reddie
White Supremacy with Sue Cockerill

As a follow up, Let’s Make A Difference! is a series of six workshops that will be taking place on Mondays from January 18 at 6–7:30pm, "for people of faith to work to end racism." More details on this leaflet or by email.

Home Office's "inhuman" approach to immigration

11/1/2021

In an interview, former Home Office immigration minister Caroline Nokes has called the her former department's approach to immigration “inhuman”, “profoundly depressing” and at times “hideously wrong", warning it will only cause further problems that will end up costing the taxpayer more money. Nokes accused ministers of “paying lip service” to Wendy Williams’ Lessons Learned report on the Windrush scandal – which broke while she was in office – and said they were failing to put people at the heart of Home Office policy, as was recommended in the review. Commitments to change the Home Office following the Windrush scandal had been “torn up, disregarded and rendered clearly completely irrelevant” when making decisions about asylum seekers. Read the full interview.

Capitol rioters and Black Lives Matter protesters - comparing responses

10/1/2021

One of the reactions to the mass-break-in to the Capitol Building in Washington last week has been to contrast the police response and numbers arrested or charged with the Black Lives Matter protests last June. The Black Lives Matter Global Network commented: "Make no mistake, if the protesters were Black, we would have been tear gassed, battered, and perhaps shot."

Former First Lady, Michele Obama released a statement pointing out the discrepancy between "these rioters and gang members ... led out of the building not in handcuffs, but free to carry on with their days" and the summer's "overwhelmingly peaceful" Black Lives Matter protest movement which saw "peaceful protesters met with brute force. We saw cracked skulls and mass arrests, law enforcement pepper spraying its way through a peaceful demonstration for a presidential photo op". Read the full statement here.

As well as his own statement describing "a moment of great dishonor and shame for our nation", former president predecessor Barack Obama has also Tweeted links to several articles further analysing the gulf in response between mostly white and mostly black protests. These are:

FiveThirtyEight.com: "The Police's Tepid Response To The Capitol Breach Wasn't An Aberration"
New Yorker: "The Capitol Invaders Enjoyed The Privilege Of Not Being Taken Seriously."
CNN: "Rioters Breached US Capitol security on Wednesday. This was the police response when it was Black protesters on DC streets last year"

Windrush – the farce continues?

4/1/2021

A report today in the Independent states: "Windrush victims are yet to receive compensation despite the Home Office announcing last month that all eligible claimants would be granted a 'fast-tracked' payment." A letter to Home Secretary Priti Patel on 1 January, signed by 31 Windrush victims and claimants to the scheme says: “We are left with the hollow sense that the ‘overhaul’ you announced on 14 December – in the lead-up to Christmas – was no more than a publicity stunt. This is the same dynamic we have faced from the beginning: we are told that changes are coming, and we will hear soon; we wait for open-ended periods, suffering all the while, some among us dying while waiting; and we are ultimately presented with something far deficient to what was promised, and expected to be thankful for it.” So far nine Windrush victims have died while awaiting compensation.
Read the full article,

Faith in Black Lives Matter

Home Office's "inhuman" approach to immigration

Capitol rioters and Black Lives Matter protesters - comparing responses

Windrush – the farce continues?

MJR News

Categories

Archives