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Dear John
I wanted to let you know how shocked and angered I was by George Floyd's
death at the hands of US police. His killing has yet again shone a light on
the racism and hatred experienced by many across the world, including here
in the UK.
As one of Hounslow borough's MPs, I am proud to represent such a
multi-cultural community where there is a strong sense of togetherness.
However, there is still long way to go to eradicate the racism often faced
by many with our community.
I joined the Labour Party and became a Labour MP because of my belief in
social justice, equality and fairness. A cornerstone of that is opposition
to racism and bigotry everywhere. It is my belief that anti-racism has
always been at the heart of the Labour Party and the Labour movement.
Over the past week I've received hundreds of moving emails from
constituents of all ages about the murder of George Floyd and the Black
Lives Matter movement. I could tell from the emotive and moving words just
how strongly people feel about this injustice, feelings that I share.
Britain's own record is not clean. The debate about statues commemorating
dead men has shone a light on our nation's past; vast wealth accumulated
through profiteering from the transatlantic slave trade. The cases of
racist murders and the police response still cause anger and bitterness
(Stephen Lawrence and Akhtar Ali Baig are probably the two most notorious
examples in London). And as I know from listening to many people locally,
the hard truth is that black people are still three times more likely to be
stopped and searched by the police than white people.
One thing that many constituents have raised with me is the lack of black
history taught in schools, the lack of black academics in further and
higher education and the lack of education about the long and painful
legacy of racism in both the British Empire and here in the UK. I believe
it's vital that the Government review what is taught in schools and broaden
our national curriculum.
Last week we also saw the Government release Public Health England's report
into the impact that coronavirus has on BAME communities. The report
confirmed what we already know, which is that you're twice as likely to die
from the coronavirus if you're BAME. The Government were right to release
this report but it's clear that there needs to be an urgent set of actions
to protect BAME people and those who are more likely to be vulnerable from
the coronavirus.
I know that lots of people were also disappointed that our Government
didn't raise its voice about President Trump's reaction to these protests;
when he threatened those protesting with military force and when the police
attacked innocent protestors with tear gas so that Trump could walk across
to St John's Episcopal Church to get a photo op. This is certainly an image
that will define his presidency.
The Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab should
have been clear in condemning President Trump and his threat to turn the
Military on those protesting.
The UK should go a step further too and review the sales of riot equipment
to the US. I signed a letter led by Dawn Butler MP calling on the
Government to do just that and was pleased that over 150 MPs from all the
political parties joined me in doing so.
Before the lockdown when I was able to regularly visit schools in Hounslow,
students would tell me about racism that they, their family or their
friends had experienced. While I know that Hounslow has a welcoming,
diverse and united community, I also know that there is much that we need
to do. So Seema Malhotra and I have written to secondary students in the
borough for their views on racism.
One of the most common things I've heard from people is the need for public
figures, including MPs, to use our voice and our platform. This is
something I will do, so I want to hear from those affected by racism on how
I, our community, and its institutions can work to eradicate racism. Please
do contact me regarding this matter, my contact details are at the bottom
of the email.
The moving words from Martin Luther King in his letter from Birmingham Jail
was that 'Injustice anywhere is a threat to Justice everywhere'; this
should serve as a driving force to us all and I want to reassure you that I
will keep standing up to the injustices we still sadly see across society.
With best wishes
RUTH CADBURY MP
UNSUBSCRIBE [1]
Printed from an email sent my Ruth Cadbury MP 367 Chiswick High Road
London, LON W4 4AG
United Kingdom
Links:
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