Chris Johnson and Andrew Ryder write about a new policy for Gypsies and Travellers which was quietly issued at the end of last month. At the end of August the government issued a flurry of statements, such as the dissolution honours list, which included a number of controversial new additions to the House of Lords, and was
We reproduce here a ‘statement of concern'[1] issued by Robin Richardson of Insted Consultancy on ‘School Governors and British Values’ which also touches on the statutory duty to prevent violent extremism now placed on schools and other educational establishments. Summary 1. Several school governors or former school governors in Birmingham have recently received a letter from the
A monthly calendar for anti-racist and social justice campaigns, highlighting key events in the UK and Europe. Immigration and asylum 24 July: The government’s system for monitoring companies it pays to run migrant detention centres is called into question after a year-long Freedom of Information battle wins disclosure of confidential ‘self-audits’. The documents reveal how contractors are paid according to their own monthly performance reports. (Corporate Watch, 24 July 2015) 27 July: The Home Office announces it will
The Birmingham-based 4WardEver UK campaign and the Mikey Powell Campaign have launched a crowdfunding appeal for a national family support fund for relatives, young people and children affected by deaths in state custody in the UK. The Memorial Family Fund has been set up in remembrance of Mikey Powell and acknowledges the work and campaigning of the late Pauline
In the last two months, at least thirteen people, two of whom were teenagers, have died trying to reach the UK, and countless others have been injured. The media have concentrated on the chaos at strike-torn Calais and the stress on lorry drivers there, as well as the hardships for holiday-makers as traffic builds up.
The last month has seen a number of developments in relation to deaths in custody: a misconduct hearing, the ten-year anniversary of the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, an inquest, new deaths in custody and a new government ‘review’ of deaths in police custody. Jean Charles de Menezes remembered On 22 July, the family of
On 25 July, the campaign for justice for Sheku Bayoh, who died after an incident with police, was launched in Glasgow. At the event organised by Scotland Against Criminalising Communities (SACC), a press conference was held, followed by a conference with the families of those who have also lost loved ones through a death in police
Below we reproduce a review of a new exhibition, ‘No Colour Bar’, which was previously published in The Voice. A new exhibition breathes life into a story of struggle and activism that is truly home-grown. We often view Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X as having ascended the mountain-top of black achievement and activism.
On 16 July, the Home Office announced an inquiry into undercover police spies and their activities monitoring family campaigns and spying on protestors. Below we produce a statement by The Monitoring Group[1] which has been supporting some of the families whose campaigns were infiltrated by the police. The Monitoring Group welcomes the spirit and substance
Solidarity also means remembering. A few weekends ago, I attended an ‘Eat Together, Fight Together’[1] picnic at Burgess Park in south London organised by the London Campaign Against Police and State Violence and Housing Action Southwark and Lambeth. Campaigners and activists enjoyed the sun, good food and conversation in a gathering not fraught with political imperatives
