Anti racists hold solidarity protest in Britain after police killing of George Floyd, Sat 30 May
Online solidarity meeting taking place Sun 31 May, 6pm: Details on the Facebook event here
Anti-racists held a solidarity protest outside the US embassy in London after the police murder of George Floyd. Supporters of the Stand Up To Racism campaign group gathered outside the US embassy main gates in south London, Saturday 30 May. They held a socially-distanced protest against the police murder of George Floyd, a black man in Minneapolis earlier this week.
They also showed support for the protests and uprisings in US cities that are demanding “Black Lives Matter” in the wake of the killing.George Floyd is the latest victim of the institutionally racist police in the US. Police violence is the leading cause of the deaths of young men in the US, according to a study by Rutgers University from August 2019.
Black men and boys face a 1 in 1,000 chance of being killed by cops over the course of their life. It’s the highest risk for all ethnic groups—and means they are 2.5 times more likely to die than whites after contact with the police.
ONLINE MEETING: Racism, Covid19 & Police Brutality: Black Lives Matter – Justice for George Floyd
SPEAKERS INCLUDE
Desmond Ziggy Mombeyarara,
Tasered by Manchester police officers in front of his young child
Claudia Webbe, MP
Bell Ribeiro Addy, MP
Weyman Bennett, co convenor Stand Up To Racism
Fitzroy Christian (New York) plus other US activists
Zoom Details will be posted on the Facebook event page shortly, and the link to the live stream of the meeting will be available on the Stand Up To Racism Facebook page at 6pm on Sunday 31 May.
Weyman Bennett, SUTR national co-convenor, said:
“George Floyd’s killing at the hands of Minneapolis police is another sign that black lives don’t matter in Donald Trumps racist America.
“In the UK we’ve seen a black man tasered in front of his child in Manchester this month while Tory adviser Dominic Cummings gets away scot-free.
“Covid-19 has exposed the racism and inequality and the heart of the US and Britain. We must fight back.”
Protesters will also take aim at the institutional racism in Britain that has been exposed by the coronavirus crisis.
Brian Richardson, Stand Up To Racism national officer, said:
“In 2014 Eric Garner’s dying words were “I can’t breathe” as New York Police officers choked him to death. It is an outrage that such atrocities are still happening 6 years later.
“George Floyd’s killing in Minneapolis is yet more evidence that Black lives are considered cheap and expendable.
“What is true in the United States is also true here as we see disproportionate numbers of people from BAME communities being exposed and dying of COVID 19.
“That is why we are standing in solidarity with our sisters and brothers and demanding that Black Lives Matter.”
Notes to editors:
For further details and quotes –
info@standuptoracism.org.uk
Stand Up To Racism is a national campaign set up to combat the rise of racism, the far right and fascism. The group is supported by prominent politicians and trade unions and its president is Labour MP Diane Abbott
