Marcus Garvey @ 80: Moving Towards A Unifying African Identity June 10 2020, 6-9pm (UK): www.bitly.com/MG100620 Can't see images? Click here...

June 4 2020 - After making the effort to write this comment to Nadine White's excellent Huffington Post piece 'Exclusive: Labour Is Losing Black Members Over Allegations Of Anti-Black Racism', I'm posting it (with linked text) here, just in case the moderator doesn't post it.

Good job!

It's not surprising that African members are leaving the Labour Party, and that can't be just because of the #LabourLeaks. Unlike his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn, it seems like Keir Starmer hasn't much regard for Labour's African members, supporters, and even MPs. Why?

+ Immediately upon becoming party leader he apologised to the Jewish community for his party's supposed anti-Semitism. Where is the apology to the African community for his party workers Afriphobia, as revealed in the #LabourLeaks documents?

+ From what I understand, Starmer has ordered an investigation into how the document got leaked, but not an investigation into the Afriphobic behaviour of Labour Party HQ staff, or their suspension – contrast that with the many members suspended or expelled for far less infractions.

+ African MPs made to apologise for being on Zoom online meeting on which expelled Labour members, falsely described as anti-Semitic, were present. As if the MPs had control over who joined the meeting.

+ From what I know, letters sent to the party's leader from CLPs and other Labour divisions on the matter of the #LabourLeaks Afriphobia revelations, have not been answered.

In spite of the Afriphobia within the party, it's not an easy decision to make. The argument put forward by Bell Ribeiro-Addy for African members to stay, does have some merit – there's clearly a role for fighting Afriphobia and other discriminations and injustices, from within. Equally, there is a need to send a message to the party leadership that Africans and Corbynites will not be party fodder.

Starmer needs to come out from the shadows, break his silence and pronounce on the matter of Afriphobia within his party!

Oh, and call anti-African/anti-'Black' racism by its name – AFRIPHOBIA, and don't care too much for that blasted BAME acronym. Address us by our heritage, use AAME (African, Asian, Minority Ethnic)!

Kwaku
www.TAOBQ.blogspot.com

TAOBQ (The African Or Black Question)

P O Box 14092, London NW10 1WL, England

www.TAOBQ.blogspot.com

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