David Lammy to join Doughty Street Chambers for Black Lives Matter webinar

The shadow justice secretary will be interviewed by barrister and founder of Urban Lawyers, Tunde Okewale

WEBINAR: David Lammy (Photo: Jack Taylor/Getty Images)

LABOUR MP David Lammy will join Doughty Street Chambers barristers Althea Brown and Tunde Okewale for an online event discussing Black Lives Matter on Wednesday, 29 July.

The webinar is part of Doughty Street Chambers’ new series exploring the concept of Black Lives Matter in the UK.

Lammy, the shadow minister for justice, who practised as a lawyer before he became a politician, will be interviewed by Okewale, founder of Urban Lawyers.

‘Injustice never sleeps’

Lammy said: “I’ve lived through countless episodes of racial injustice and social unrest. Yet now, more than ever, I get the feeling that the black community are unbelievably tired. Tired of being racially profiled in the street. Tired of waiting for progress. Tired of the never-ending struggle. At the same time, we know that injustice never sleeps, so we cannot afford to be weary.

“Ultimately, we have to find a way to sustain the impetus for systemic change. Only then can we say with confidence that we are witnessing history being made.” 

Looking beyond the call to action, the webinar will investigate what Black Lives Matter means in Britain, discuss key experiences of black people in the UK and look at how the UK’s response can help to inform the global movement.

Okewale said: “Conversations surrounding race and discrimination are vital for all members of society to partake in – especially if you benefit from the privilege of not being a racial minority. We must challenge ourselves to open up space for honest, messy, and courageous conversations about race. When we don’t have those conversations, we are failing as a society, and the cost of that failure as we have seen is countless [black] lives.”

A time to come together 

A panel discussion, chaired by Brown, will look at some of the key organisations that are campaigning and protesting to ensure black lives matter in Britain.

Leila Thomas of Urban Synergy, Hannah Markham, Graveney Stories of Racism, and Mass Ndow-Njie, Bridging the Bar, will all feature on the panel.

Journalist and academic at the University of Cardiff, David Dunkley Gyimah, will also speak about the critical role of journalism in the context of Black Lives Matter.

Brown said: “I have spent the last 25 years working for brave individuals seeking to fight back against the racial discrimination which has blighted their lives in so many ways. The toll it takes on emotional wellbeing is often overwhelming. I have seen the same patterns of behaviours and less favourable treatment inflicted over and over within the public and private sector.

“This is a time for all of us to focus on working together from wherever and whatever our particular areas of interest to remove these systemic, endemic and racially biased constructs and to truly imbed racial equality as a fundamental paradigm within society.” 

To find out more about the free webinar and to register, click here.

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