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Countless people have gathered in south London to celebrate Emancipation Day and to seek redress and the restoration of citizenship for the Windrush generation and their descendants.
Organized by a coalition of campaign groups, the event took place in Max Roach Park, Brixton, where the crowd listened to speeches in support of solidarity with Africans as they marked the end of slavery in the British Empire.
The organizers included the Reparations March Committee for the African Emancipation Day and the ecocide campaign Stop the Ma’angamizi.
Esther Stanford-Xosei, spokeswoman for the Reparations March Committee for the African Emancipation Day and general coordinator of the Stop the Ma’angamizi campaign, described the event as a day of “nonviolent direct action”.
People from Windrush and Reparatory Justice groups across the UK attend an Emancipation Day gathering at Max Roach Park in Brixton, London. (Steve Parsons / PA) / PA wire
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She told the PA news agency, “This is not just about compensation, redress is about repairing damage and a lot of damage is happening today.
“We are in a state of emergency. Our children die, we have been misled, we have been duped. Our people have been told a lie about our lives here in the UK. Now that many of our ancestors have worked their asses off, they are being deported.
“We are here today to honor the so-called Emancipation Day. But we are also sending an important message to the UK state and other European governments that we have not forgotten the injustices against our ancestors. “
Lorna Downer, 55, and Rev Fujo Malaika, 51, traveled from Manchester to attend the event.
Ms. Malaika told PA: “We have been coming down for years, we are passionate about our people. We want to see change, we want our people to stop experiencing racism. We let the community know that we also want changes. “
People played drums during the event at Max Roach Park. (Steve Parsons / PA) / PA wire
Ms. Downer added, “It’s about supporting the call for redress and change. It’s about people recognizing the truth about the day of emancipation because the story was told wrongly. “
Another event in nearby Windrush Square, organized by the Windrush Defenders Group and the Manchester Reparatory Justice Forum, also heard speeches.
Some members then went to Buckingham Palace and filed a manifesto calling for better support for members of the Windrush generation.
Anthony Brown, co-founder of Windrush Defenders Legal, said, “We all need to understand the issues. If members of our community are treated like the Windrush generation, this will continue.
“We, the British public, have to decide how to deal with this and to make amends for the damage.”