People from across the Isle of Wight came together at Church Litten in Newport this lunchtime (Thursday) to protest the murder of George Floyd and to reaffirm that Black Lives Matter.
Protesters stood in groups of 6 whilst loosely observing the 2-metre social distancing rules.
At 12:10, those attending got down on their knees and held a 9 minute silence in memory of George Floyd, who was killed by a Police officer in America last week.
Organisers have said:
“We are meeting in both solidarity and protest: solidarity with Black people in America who are protesting against centuries of systemic racism and white supremacy in the United States and are being met with brutal police violence and brutality; but also in protest against racism and white supremacy in our own country.
“Black British people are 4 times as likely to be stopped and searched by police as white people and are only half as likely to go to a Russell Group University.
“Black women in this country die in childbirth at a rate 4x higher than white women and ethnic minority British people are 2x more likely to live in poverty than white British people. We believe it is a moral obligation on all of us to fight racism. It is not enough to be “not racist”; we must all be actively anti-racist”.
Other, larger protests have been held across the country including in London, where rioting has now broken out.
Police were in attendance at Church Litten, – including the force’s local Protest Liaison Officer – but the protest went peacefully without the need for officers to intervene.
Dave Stewart, Leader of the Isle of Wight Council, has said:
“Recent events in America have shone a light onto the relationship between police forces and the communities they serve, and particularly the way in which policing can have an impact on the lives of minority groups. In America this is focused on black people, but across the world these events have resonated with people of all races.
“The death of George Floyd was a shocking and deeply troubling incident, but it would be wrong to imagine that this is an issue far away, concerning people that are not like us. Although it is not usually so obvious, prejudice and racism can be found on the Isle of Wight too, and if we allow it could divide and damage our community.
“We are lucky enough to live in a society where our police are committed to tackling bias, racism and discrimination of all sorts. We have confidence in our police officers, and I was pleased to hear about the sensitive and supportive policing of the Black Lives Matter protest in Church Litten recently which ensured that those in our Island community who wanted to show their solidarity and concern could make their voices heard safely and without fear.
“Those who are concerned about George Floyd and events in America can be assured that the Isle of Wight Council stands alongside our police and other public services, committed to the highest standards of equality and inclusion as we work with our diverse communities. And if at any time we fall short in those aspirations, we will not be afraid to deal with it in a transparent and honest way.”
You seem triggered, Rigby. I’ll let you calm down, and then we can have a mature, adult conversation about this.