Most Reform Members Believe Non-White UK Citizens Born Abroad Should Be Forced or Encouraged to Leave, Poll Finds

More than half of Reform UK members believe non-white British citizens born abroad should be deported or encouraged to leave, according to the first publicly available poll of those in Nigel Farage’s party.  

Okay, it's not exactly news, but it's there in black and white.  Go here to read more from the Guardian.  

I think this demonstrates the failure of multiculturalism.  Too bad.  I thought Britain had been multicultural since the 1970s at least.  I guess the broadcasting of the N-word by the BBC put paid to that.  And then there was the Windrush scandal.  See also:  Exiled to Poland for 28 Years.  

And then there's the police racism and deaths in police custody.  Yeah, still.   Go here for my interview with Ken Fero, Director of the film Injustice.  20 years after Injustice, the problems still persist.  

Meanwhile, this report on Black British Voices from Cambridge University reveals high levels of discrimination against Black people and high levels of distrust among Black people in Britain, and 95% of those surveyed belived the curriculum neglects Black people's experience.  

What are your thoughts?  Please let us know - post your thoughts below, especially if you are a British or UK citizen and were born abroad or your parents were born abroad and became UK citizens.  

 

 

Spree of Executions during Trump's Final Days

In what NBC News has called a "spree" of Federal executions, Donald Trump has ordered the Federal executions of five more people.  Four of them are Black men, including Brandon Bernard, who was arrested at the age of 18.  The government's scheduling timeline violates the federal death penalty law.

This makes Trump the "President" to order the most Federal executions in over 130 years.  The Republican administration had not ordered any executions for 17 years - until July of this year.  

According to a recent report by the Death Penalty Information Center, there is a history of racism in the criminal injustice system which dates back to slavery, lynching and segregation.  Well, we already knew that, but it's still useful to hear it. 

See also:  How to Escape the Prison System.    

See also:  Life Sentence for Stealing $9.  

See also:  83 Days, about George Stinney, who was executed at the age of 14. 

See also:  New Revelations about Emmett Till, who was murdered at the age of 14.  "The system rested on violence, and America let that happen."   The murder of Emmett Till galvanised people to fight racial injustice and ultimately led to the Civil Rights movement.  But today, this racism and criminal injustice continues. 

This story was also covered by The Guardian and the BBC.  

What do you make of all this?  Please leave your comments below and please share this with your networks.  Thanks.  

Small Axe: The Mangrove at the BBC

The Real Mangrove NIne

Imagine you are sitting in a local Caribbean cafe, enjoying a meal with your friends and loved ones, and the police come in and smash the place up.  I heard about the Mangrove  many years ago.  

 

This is the first of four films which The BBC will be screening on the BBC under the heading of "Small Axe".  

These films by Steve McQueen, who directed Twelve Years a Slave, will explore the experience of Black people in Britain.  

All the proprietor, Frank Crichlow, wanted was to run a Caribbean restaurant which reflected his culture and that of his local community.  But the racism of the police turned it into a battleground.  They are shown brutally trying to close down the Mangrove and even assaulting Frank Crichlow in the courtroom. 

This film, The Mangrove, is still available on iplayer.  This article about the Mangrove and the Mangrove Nine contains footage of the events described.  It also gives background information, including the fact that drugs, which apparently came from a police lab, were found on the premises.  

Black activists, including Darcus Howe, got involved in the struggle around the Mangrove.  This was an education for many people, not least Frank Crichlow.  

If you have not seen this film, you definitely need to see it.  I hope it will be shown internationally.  

Plus journalist Peter Kellner talks about giving evidence at the Old Bailey trial of the Mangrove Nine. 

See also:  Injustice:  The Film the Police Tried to Ban.  

Plus, we discussed television showing films about the Black experience here.  

Please share this with your networks and please comment below.  Thanks.  

 

World War One: The Crucial Battle for Togo

Map of colonised Africa 1914

I watched this very interesting short film on the BBC today. 

The wireless station at Kamina in Togo, West Africa, was a crucial centre for German communications.  Built by a huge workforce of African men and women during the German occupation, the station allowed the German colonisers to communicate with their home country and with Asia.

This is just one of many examples of how African labour, land and resources were exploited by European colonisers during the war. 

See also:  Black People in the First World War. 

Officers Involved in Shooting Refuse to Speak

The police officers involved in the Mark Duggan shooting have refused to be interviewed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission about the incident. 

The shooting of Mr. Duggan, pictured left, is widely believed to be one of the causes of last year's rioting across the UK.  

Click here to read more.  Plus click here for a Nubiart Diary editorial on the killing of Mark Duggan. 

Breaking into Britain

I saw this documentary on the BBC last week. "Breaking into Britain" tracks people travelling into Britain from two parts of the world: Afghanistan and Nigeria.

They are people who would not be able to enter the UK legally, so they have to find various means, dealing with shady people, journeying through war zones, and doing whatever they can to get here.

The documentary depicted the ordeal they go through.

People leaving Afghanistan may have to pay a people smuggler several thousand pounds to get them here. The journalist, himself from an Afghan background, met fellow Afghans everywhere he went. They often have to travel via Iran and Turkey, sometimes taking serious risks. Some have no money and no food. Many, having made it into Europe, find themselves stranded in Athens, sleeping rough and relying on charities to feed them and their children.

I guess they did not realise that Greece was in economic meltdown.

Those coming from Nigeria may have started their journeys anywhere on the continent. They travel through the desert to get to Morocco, where they try to get into Italy.

The documentary did not really explain or depict the reasons why these people are so desperate to get into Britain. It mentioned that Afghanistan has been at war for over 30 years, so life is difficult there. And seeing the risks they take shows us how determined they are to get into Britain.

People smugglers often demand sex from the women relying on them to help them get into Europe. A woman from the Congo described how she was raped at knife-point by a smuggler in the middle of the desert.

African people often travel via Niger. The journey through the Sahara is so dangerous that they have to travel in armed convoys.

Again, the documentary did not mention why Niger is so dangerous, although, coming from Congo, the woman, like many others, is seeking to escape an area of conflict.

People travel via overcrowded buses, lorries and boats; climb over fences, and cling to the bottom of lorries. They dodge the authorities and meet with hostility from from locals.

They are looking to find a better life for themselves and their children.

Some of them, however, once reality strikes, just wish they had enough money to go home.

Lenny Henry in the Slums

Comedian Lenny Henry has done a great deal of work for charity over the years. Through Comic Relief, he has travelled to some of the poorest parts of Africa to help raise money for those living there.



This time was different, though. He found himself in Kibera, one of the largest and poorest slums in the world, near Nairobi, Kenya.

Kibera houses approximately one million people in a one and a half square miles. Most of these people live in extreme poverty.

The slum is appallingly filthy, but Kiberans somehow manage to keep their homes spotlessly clean. They mostly live in corrugated iron shacks, and one toilet may be shared by anything up to fifty families.

Along with three other celebrities, Henry went to live in Kibera to raise awareness for Comic Relief. He stayed with a family of orphans who were looked after by their 16-year-old brother, the eldest of five.

Henry started by saying he had seen places like this many times before, but having spent the night there, said he had never seen anything this bad. He described it as "hell".

The children lived in one room, next door to an open toilet which regularly overflowed, causing raw sewage to flow through the children's room.

Henry broke from the rules of the documentary to use his own funds to buy the children another house to live in.

It was very moving to see Lenny Henry crying at the sight, and smell, of the children's living conditions. However, shame on Comic Relief for finding them and leaving them there to film. Why didn't Comic Relief move those children out of there? This is very exploitative.

Shame on you, Comic Relief. Shame.

I have never been a fan of reality TV, and this show did not make a fan of me.

In the end, all four celebrities helped the people they were staying with, and I found this very inspiring.

Black History Show from Radio Nottingham

I've just been listening online to a very interesting show from Bea Udeh at Radio Nottingham. She asks, is Black History Month still relevant in the UK in 2010? What are the origins of BHM UK? She also has white guests expressing their disapproval of BHM.

Click here to listen.

Click here for lots more BHM UK events. I will keep adding to the list, so please keep coming back.

Ian Wright 'axed from Live From Studio Five'

Presenter and former footballer Ian Wright is claiming he was fired from Live at Studio Five. I reckon he was the best thing about that show.

Click here to read more.

This reminds me of when Henry Bonsu was sacked from the BBC because he was "too intellectual". He talks about this in Black Success Stories. He was also a regular panellist on Five's The Wright Stuff at the time, but soon disappeared from that show as well.

Moira Stuart was later sacked by the BBC reportedly for being "too old".

Ludovic Kennedy once said there were too many Black people on TV - looks like Five are doing something about it.

Small Island

As I'm sure you know, tonight, the BBC is screening the first part of A Small Island, the beautiful, lyrical piece based on the novel by Andrea Levy. I was privileged to view this when Brother Tony screened it at the Imperial War Museum during Black History Month. He will be screening it again next year, when the producer will be present. I urge you to watch it either on TV or at the museum, or preferably both.

Click here for the next Black history events with Tony Warner. He holds them every month - not just in October!

Click here for loads of books about Black history and Black achievers.

Not Forgotten - Soldiers of Empire

While on the subject of Ian Hislop, I very much enjoyed his Not Forgotten series which was shown on Channel 4 several years ago, in which he investigated different people who had served during the First World War.

He has since made additional programmes, which are now being aired. On Monday night, I watched the episode about Empire troops, i.e. those from African and Caribbean countries, India, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It was made to the same high standard as the earlier series.

Empire troops are often mentioned only as a footnote to the main event, but Hislop’s programme showed footage of Black troops on the front line, while he interviewed the grandchildren of one Caribbean man who had served on the Western Front.

I had previously seen the story of the Black men from the Caribbean who sailed on a ship via the North Pole but were not given winter uniforms. Many of them had their limbs amputated due to frostbite.

Those troops who arrived fit to serve were not allowed to fight, or even carry arms. They were put to doing heavy manual labour such as moving large amounts of ammunition, and were under fire from the enemy but were not given the means to defend themselves. Seeing the footage is always a strong experience.

Another excellent programme, well worth watching.

I also recently attended a screening of “A Small Island”, a BBC programme based on the novel by Andrea Levy, at the Imperial War Museum. I shall blog about this soon.

On Sunday 15th November, Tony Warner of Black History Walks will be doing a presentation on How Black People Won World War II. Come along if you can - I'm sure it will be both educational and entertaining. Click here for more details.

It is so important for us to have a sense of our own history and cultural heritage, and our contribution to world history. This is an essential part of having high self-esteem and confidence. For more about this, see The Key to Confidence. See also, Success Strategies for Black People.

New Respect for Ainsley Harriott

I love Ready, Steady, Cook. It's a great show.

And I gained new respect for the presenter, Ainsley Harriott, yesterday after his appearance on The Wright Stuff. While professing his respect for Carol Thatcher, he also said, "people think because they [gollywogs] are cute and cuddly, it's okay to use that word. It's not on".

See also: Carol Thatcher and the Gollywog Remark. She has been sacked from one of her shows on the BBC after refusing to apologise for comparing someone's hair to that of a gollywog. She insists this was not a racist remark.

Carol Thatcher and the Gollywog Remark

Apparently, Carol Thatcher made a remark at work, at the BBC, comparing someone's hair to that of a gollywog. This was being discussed on The Wright Stuff this morning. Carol Thatcher is a frequent panel member on the show. Remember, this is the same show on which Henry Bonsu used to be a panel member before they got rid of him with no explanation. He talks about this in my book Black Success Stories.

The panel pretty much agreed that this is a storm in a teacup, as Thatcher's remark was made privately. Sanjeev Bhaskar is making jokes about it.

These kinds of grotesque images were widely circulated in the African colonies to reinforce negative stereotypes about African people, as the the late Len Garrison, founder of the Black Cultural Archives explains in Black Success Stories.

I don't think anyone should have to work in a workplace where these kinds of remarks are being made.

One of the key areas in which Black people were taught to have negative thoughts and feelings about ourself was around our hair. To read more about this, read The Key to Confidence and Self-Esteem. See also What They Don't Want Us to Know.