24/03/2022
Dear Hassan,
The 25th of May 2020 was a day that changed the world forever, when a white police officer kneeled on George’s Floyd neck for 8 min and 46 seconds.
As the murder was filmed and the video released, the world erupted with rage, not only at yet another police killing of a Black man in the US; but also the widespread excessive use of police violence, and the scourge of white supremacy, in countries primarily in the Global South, where devastating colonial pasts have shaken our foundations and systems to their core.
From the movement to in Nigeria to the protests against police violence in Puerto Rico, Colombia and South Asia, descent-based communities are treated less favourably, unequally, stigmatised, oppressed and ostracised – and we’re telling our governments we won’t stand by it.
Descent-based discrimination segregates specific individuals and groups because of their inherited status at birth, descent, or ancestry. It’s widely embedded into our social structures and virtually unchangeable.
But the historical injustices caused by the legacy of slavery and colonialism, and the continuing prevalence of racial discrimination, need to be acknowledged and addressed.
As much as an alternative may feel far-removed from our realities today, we can start by understanding decent-based discrimination, how it manifests itself all over the world, and how we can continue fighting it wherever we see it.
