(Samaj Weekly)
It is almost three weeks since George Floyd was murdered by police in USA and the whole country engulfed by anti race demonstrations and protests. The demonstrations and protests spontaneously erupted like volcano and spread faster than coronavirus covid-19, not only across the boundaries of USA but also through out the whole world. Now many countries across the world are faced with double pandemic of coronavirus covid-19 and deep rooted racial problems simmering under the carpet over the past many years.
Thousands of people from many differing back grounds and denominations,black and white joined together came out on roads and spelt their anger and frustration against racial prejudice and inequality. I have seen many anti-race demonstrations and protests here in UK over the past many years but present protests and agitations had a totally different dimensions and supersedes the previous ones as such attacking and demolishing of colonial relics and statues linked with racism and denial of human rights. Some of the monuments and statues are a part of black slave history and regarded by many as glorifying slave trade and atrocities on black and ethnic minorities.
Thousands of protesters in USA have targeted confederate monuments which had been a source of tension for years as some people say that they glorify the confederacy and skim over the dark and painful history of black slavery. In Richmond city the statue of Christopher Columbus a well known adventurer and sailor demolished by agitators and drowned in nearby lake. Many statues of famous personalities like David Jefferson and George Washington were either defamed or damaged.
Similarly in UK ‘BLACK life Matters’ demonstrations targeted many historical monuments and statues. In Bristol the agitators pulled down the statue of Edward Colton who is well known for playing leading roll in a company engaged in black slave trade. A well known statue of Sir Winston Churchill in parliament square London have to be boarded up to protect it from demonstrates and another statue of Robert Milligan well known for his engagement in black trade has to be removed by the local authority. And more than six thousands people have signed a petition to remove the statue of Mohan Dass Karamchand Gandhi in Leicester city. He is regarded a fascist, racist and sexual predator who had brought inconsolable sufferings to many. A number of statues of him already have been removed or demolished in African countries because he was the one who helped Britain to quail their fight for freedom and human rights. In UK the campaigners for ‘BLACK life Meters’ had redrawn up a list of monuments, statues, roads and buildings names they would like to be changed or removed. The UK government has to give in to strong feelings and sentiments of the agitators and appointed an ‘Inequality Commission’ to investigate the wider issues of racial prejudice and discriminatory treatment in provision of public services and equality of opportunity. There is a strong uprising across the glove particularly in European countries like France, Italy, Germany and Belgium either to remove or renaming of racial and offensive monuments, statues and buildings name after black slave traders. In Belgium thousands agitators signed a petition demanding to remove the statue of king Leopold-11 from Antwerp suburb as in the late 1800s he reigned over the deaths and exploitation of millions of Congolese.
Although the murder of George Floyd reflect clear motivation of racial tone but the scale and dimension of agitations and protests all over the world are clear indication towards racial prejudice, injustice, atrocities,inequality treatment and denial of human rights to their compatriots. We must understand that the past history is full of racial prejudice, religious hatred and atrocities on weaker sections of of the society and their appeared to be no abatement now in twenty first century.
India is a largest democracy of the world, where thousands of George Floyds have been brutally beaten up and killed by police over the past 72 years of independence. According to the government’s own (NCRB) National Crime Record Beuro more than 40,000 crimes of brutality, atrocities and injustices inflicted every year against the so called untouchables and socially marginalised communities of India. India is declared a dangerous country for women due to crimes of sexual harassment.
bruitality, killings and rapes taking place at least one case every three minutes against women some of them happened to under age or even children. The successive governments of India appeared to be mook spectators and most cases happened to be on the side of culprits. There is a crying need to divert policies and resources to tackle head on the covert and overt institutionalised racism, inequality and caste prejudice. India is now sitting on a time bomb of caste prejudice and racial inequality if not tackled with out further delay it can blow up into an unimaginable destruction and damage the integrity of the nation.
– ALDERMAN BISHAN DASS BAINS
Mayor of Wolverhampton for the year 1986/87
