UK Black Pride’s Lady Phyll says structural racism in Britain is ‘diabolical’

In an urgent message to the government, the founder of UK Black Pride, Lady Phyll, says there is “no time to stand still” when it comes to racism and discrimination.

UK Black Pride returned to London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Stratford, on Sunday (11 August), with performances from the likes of Thanyia Moore, rapper Reptile B and Bollyqueer.

The event celebrates people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Latin American and Middle Eastern descent and offers a safe space where people can celebrate diverse sexualities, gender identities, gender expressions and cultures.

Speaking exclusively to PinkNews at the event, Lady Phyll said, in the wake of the far-right riots which swept the UK last week: “Refugees, migrants, immigrants, asylum seekers, Black and brown bodies are being beaten, targeted.

“Our theme is equality and justice. We’re still learning what freedom really looks like when there are freedoms for some but not for others.

“When you think about Palestine, when you think about Sudan, when you think about Congo, when you think about Haiti, when you think about Ghana, Kenya, there are some people who cannot be here today, for so many different reasons.”

She continued: “All I’m going to say is that we will continue to grow, learn and think about ‘what does radical liberation mean?’

“The structural and systemic racism that exists in this country is diabolical, it’s dire, and I believe that people are fuelling this, and that’s why others feel they can attack our communities.”

Directly addressing Keir Starmer, who has been in Downing Street for little more than a month, the former Stonewall trustee added: “There’s no time to stand still.

“This can’t be performative. This can’t be tokenistic. The hate is very, very real, and we are feeling it.”

Lady Phyll, who stood down from UK charity Kaleidoscope Trust last year to become Black Pride’s first chief executive, went on to say: “We’re going to be listening to many more voices in our community, so we can think about how we shape it, what it looks like, what it feels like, and how we hold space for [one another] to fight for liberation in a radical, sustainable way.”

Before Sunday’s event, HIV activist Marc Thompson spoke to PinkNews about what it meant to him.

“[It is] a celebration and acknowledgement of the history, richness, activism, love and the community.

“It means acknowledging this really strong place that we are at, given all the struggles we have had to face. It’s pride in my history, pride in our existence, pride in our resistance and the fact that we live life to the full in spite of all those things,” he said.

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