General Article Time to speak up: some necessary words about racism

Topic Selected: Racism Book Volume: 376

By Tracie Jolliff

In September 2016 nine people from Black Lives Matter UK chained themselves together on the runway at London City airport to protest against racial injustice. Seven of them were arrested after passengers complained about inconvenience, and the nation failed to see what the fuss was all about. It’s hard to believe that just four years later the world appears to have made an about turn. Today there’s not a corner of our globe that has not heard of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Statues that symbolised the permanence of systems in which racial injustice was the necessary fuel for their operation (slavery, apartheid, colonialism) have been toppled; and personal/collective pledges to be part of this movement for change have been made by people of every hue and in every tongue.

In the wake of this seismic global shift, those who have committed their lives to bringing about social justice are asking, is this the moment that will herald transformation? And as eloqu...

Would you like to see the rest of this article and all the other benefits that Issues Online can provide with?

Sign up now for an immediate no obligation FREE TRIAL and view the entire collection