DOREEN LAWRENCE has stood by comments she made about race playing a factor in the response to the Grenfell Tower fire.
The Labour peer has been heavily criticised after she said that there was “no doubt” racism contributed to the Grenfell tragedy.
Speaking to Channel 4 News last week, Lady Lawrence said: “Had that been a block full of white people in there, they would have done everything to get them out as fast as possible and make sure that they do what they needed to do.”
She added: “Nobody wanted to mention the word ‘race’ in the whole thing. [Because] when I saw the residents who lived in that block, to me it was under no doubt around the racism that existed at that time.”
Responding to the Lawrence’s comments, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, Matt Wrack, described her claims as “untrue and unjust”.
“Any suggestion that firefighters were motivated by racism is untrue and unjust. Firefighters put their own lives at risk throughout the fire – to save the lives of others,” Wrack said.
He added: “The Fire Brigades Union has a long history of challenging racism, including within the fire service.
“We supported the Stephen Lawrence campaign from the start. We have stood against racism in Britain and internationally: the first union to support the Anti Apartheid Movement.”
Wrack said that the Fire Brigades Union would seek to meet with Lawrence as soon as possible.
John Apter, national chair of the Police Federation, described Lawrence’s words as “a disgraceful and unfair slur on firefighters who put their own lives on the line to save as many people as they could”.
“It mattered not the colour of their skin, the firefighters and all 999 colleagues did their very best. This from Doreen Lawrence is misjudged and insulting,” Apter said.
Lawrence has not retracted her comments or apologised amid calls to do so.
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43 Comments
I have listened to “baroness”Lawrence interview and I can not believe the comments she made, how dare she, she is a disgrace and doesn’t deserve the baroness title, to say that the firefighters were racist and if the poor people who were in that tower had been white more would have been done is absolutely disgusting, those firefighters risk their own lives everyday they get called out, sometimes it must cross their minds “wonder if I’ll go home today “ but I bet it never crosses their minds “ if they are people of colour I don’t want to save them “ that woman should be made to public apologise to all firefighters and stripped of her title, she is using what happened which was awful to her son at every opportunity and now she is going too far, racism should go both ways but no it doesn’t it’s so unfair that she can get away with this, if it was the other way round there would be an uproar
I agree 100% with your comment and does this made woman think the fire service takes a survey of who’s in the tower block before they act I really hope shes as a clear racist loses any titles she has and she better hope she never needs the fire brigade
We already know those people were in that death trap because they were poor and brown. If there are questions about whether being poor and brown impacted rescue attempts, then they’re valid questions that should be answered with complete transparency…unless there’s something to hide.
Having watched and listened to this interview on TV, I am amazed (but not surprised) this has not been picked up by the national media.
My wife and I were utterly disgusted at Mrs Lawrence’s totally racist comments. My son-in-law was once in the fire service, my daughter is in the Police force (Met) and her boyfriend was one of the officers in attendance at the tragedy and therefore I have a reasonable insight into what goes on in those services, the insults, abuse and life threatening situations they often face.
The Grenfell disaster was a terrible tragedy but why do so many people (including the media) try to put the blame of so many deaths on the Fire service and the Police?
But worse than that is this disgraceful comment by Mrs Lawrence. Who is racist here I wonder? She should be forced to apologise and have her “honour” removed.
Words fail me. That’s just about the worst racist slur I have ever heard. The woman is a disgrace and not fit for office.
I’m a retired London firefighter. Now I’ve seen some bastard jobs in my day, but that looked like hell on earth. For this idiot to denigrate these people from her position of privelige is unbelievable. Why is she not being investigated for inciting racial hatred. I can tell you now, when you’re piling in in BA, surrounded by smoke, you can’t tell gender, colour, or any thing else. It’s a RESCUE service, and that’s what we do
Many firefighters risked their lives that night,went against policies and procedures to save lives. This comment is an insult to all that attended this incident. Many of them will carry the scars of what they went through that night for the rest of their lives. Lets not forget that many rescued people and gave up their breathing apparatus to these people, what the long term affect on their health will be, only time will tell. A full apology must be given or her title removed.
I did 28 years in London Fire Brigade and never did Racism come into the rescues at all. I never every been so angry over this women’s comments, she should not be a dame with a crooked mind such as hers this could have all sorts of repercussions, no wonder they is so much fiction between blacks and whites.
Message to Baroness Lawrence.
Baroness Lawrence, I am a black ex firefighter who served in the London Fire Brigade for twenty five years. You are certainly wrong in your claim that race played a part in the rescue operation at Grenfell Towers. You have no reason or evidence to support those claims and channel four should not have broadcast them unchallenged. If this was an attempt to gain attention for the grievances of the bereaved, it’s wrong headed and dishonest. It’s also a cruel slander against those LFB personnel that attended Grenfell Towers.
The operational personnel that attended that incident that night, were betrayed by bad governance, poor training and inappropriate fireground procedures that led to a Fire Brigade Control Officer who was remote from the fireground making the decision as to when the building should be evacuated. The London Fire Brigade will be criticised for its performance that night by the ongoing enquiry, it will be culpable in some aspects of its performance. It will not be culpable to the charge of racism in its operational performances not ever!
You cannot imagine how horrific that claim is to serving and ex firefighters, you have fuelled a lot of anger and emotional distress in both groups. You need to correct this egregious wrong, by retracting the remarks and apologising for the offence you have caused.
I have for some time been an admirer of yours, your calm stoicism, your determination and your ability to articulate your feelings in the aftermath of your sons death, impressed and inspired me and the nation. But your claim that race played apart in the performance of the firefighters that attended Greenfell Towers is disgusting racism in itself, and you corrupt your own reputation. Please don’t become like those bitter hateful racists that took your son.
Doreen, no one can imagine your loss, but I truly hope your heart finds the peace you deserve.
Perfect summation. x
I am disgusted with her. My son is a Grenfell fire fighter he is white his wife and children are black!
He is devastated as are all firefighters.
She is a vile nasty woman. This is the same woman who claimed that the off duty police officer and his wife who, whilst on the way back from church, and stopped to help her dying son, didn’t want a black person’s blood on their hands. Of course she won’t apologise. Why should she. She has a free ticket to be a provocative race baiter for the rest of her life without anyone of note having the courage to challenge her. Nasty bit of work
I find it difficult to comprehend that Doreen has been labelled as racist. It is impossible for any Black person to be racists as we, as Black people have no power. We are all prejudice but prejudice plus power equal racism. If a white politician made that statement he or she would be seen as a hero or heroine. Leave Mrs Lawrence alone.
Racism isnt just a simple black people versus white people thing? What happened in the war with Hitler and the Jewish people was racism.
You surely cant really believe that if you have darker skin that you simply cannot be racist?
A quick google search of the dictionary definition of racism:
noun
prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.
Doesn’t mention skin colour there at all does it?
…prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior…
in reply to TANYA DAY 29th OCT dictionary definition re. discrimination
…underpinned how the assumption that the white Eurocentric view,s regarding race is embedded historically through subjugation for superiority, RACIAL SUPERIORITY.
…colour denotes race – not nationality.
Please read her comments I am a black woman and I’m disgusted by her comments and pathetic apology. How can you possibly think that her comments are not racist. Maybe she should risk her life and go into a burning building and try to see if she can tell white from black through flames and smoke.
You are talking utter rubbish and along with her are a disgrace calling those who try to help and save lives while putting theirs in danger a sad day when people can say this and not be brought to account
You surely are not serious. A lot of the firefighters were black too and went in to save as many lives as possible. In their BA’s in thick smoke and heat they probably couldn’t even see what colour anyone was. Appalling and disrespectful to all firefighters. Doreen should lose her title. She has upset a lot of people with her disgusting comments
Utter rubbish – sadly this is a façade that many are happy to hide behind. Anybody making the ridiculous statements she did should be hauled over the coals, regardless of their skin colour.
Kabelo Sebele shes a racist how dare she say what she said disgusting!! The woman should be stripped of her title she doesn’t deserve it she plays on her poor sons memory, I know people who died in grenfell and they were white
I could not believe the comments of Doreen Lawrence. Does she really believe that the firefighters approaching that unprecedented inferno were considering the race of the victims. I think she has lost the plot!
Simply, it is like this: The initial fire crews were successfully dealing with a small domestic fire. Secondly IF the building had not been clad with a flammable material, that would have been the end of it. However, in an effort to gentrify the building the council, in its wisdom, opted to surround the building with a flammable sheath. THAT is where the blame lays!
Now, couple this with unsuitable window frames and a building perforated like a Swiss cheese with internal gas and electric routes. The question now is; were the gas and cabling routes made good again? On the balance of experience, I think not!
I was the officer in charge of a station with 27 blocks of multi storey flats in an area of austerity, in Liverpool, before it became fashionable. Fires were frequent, but the ‘stay put’ policy never failed.
Now the faceless ones, once again, walk away without looking back.
I feel confident that if the late George Carman had been in the defence brief of this ‘blame laying’ enquiry then the right people would be identified as responsible. The Fire Service should have entered this arena on the attack!
Race definitely played in a part in the disgraceful rescue attempt by telling residents to go to the top of the building thrn leave them there untilnfire consumes them.
The fire services in the phone were told to tell residents by council to stay in flats as their aim was to demolish it so the lives of these ethnic minorities disnt matter. They believed the racist press will not care to cover it. It back fires because their emergency response was a global embarrassment right from the water spray that reached hlaf way and how it took them 3 hours to get to the building. To be honest Grenfell was a test bu developers to see if the ey could get away with corporate murder.
The riot police on the ground were shouting at families threatening them with arrest when they wanted to save loved ones. They also were instructed to catch illegal migrants. So their concern was not to save lives.
Look at the racists coming on the comments defending the shambolic rescue attempt and saying they risked their lives wtc. Its thir job to save lives asnif ethnic minorities should be grateful for having firemen come round. Its this attitude that caused so many deaths the fact they didn’t care leaving little children abandoned in stairway to be stampedes racists knew what they were doing gheir ain was to take time and let the flames engulf building
Lola I am horrified by your comments. I’m not sure where your information has been sought from. I am happy to clarify a few things. The response time was not 3 hours. It was less than 15 mins from the call to the first BA wearers being deployed into the flat.
The sprays as u say will not reach the top of the building. This is just simply laws of physics. Nothing to do with the firefighters at the end of them. No fire service in the country has sprays or jets that would reach the top of that building from the ground.
The stay put policy may have been outdated but what u have to realise is that most fire on building are confined to theinside. Where the stay put policy would work. Not like Grenfell where the outside of the building was actually on fire. This was most unprecedented.
Are u actually suggesting that the attending fire fighters were trampling over people. They would have been doing every thing to get them out. I know they actually broke the set procedures and risked their own lives by removing their air and giving it to the residents as they rescued them to help get them out.
I hope u have read more and more on this tragedy and realise it was the construction of the building not the fire fighters who were to blame
Doreen Lawrence you are a disgrace one day you or your family might need their help the fire brigadie do a excellent job
Let’s keep this simple. There were systemic failings of the LFB. That is the confirmed outcome.
The individual firefighters who go in are not the ones Doreen is referring to. Words cannot describe the fantastic job they do.
The racial element is about the way decisions were made on that terrible night. The decision makers know the demographics of Grenfell. There was no appetite for urgency and coordination.
Decisions were being made for people they don’t care much about.
What a disgusting comment to make, and a raciest to boot, how dare she smear the efforts of the men and women of the London fire brigade, and to bring these so so sad deaths down to a raciest level is deplorable, she should be made to give her title back, what happened to her son was dreadful and with no excuse or reasoning, her comments are no better, what is she trying to do make a wide divide even wider ? How has this not been published more ? I heard her dreadful comments on radio Manchester on the Allan beswick late night talk show and I was disgusted, I don’t get offended easily but found this comment under the circumstances just wrong, fire fighters in the whole these days are from ALL back grounds, in fact at my local farm shop picking some meat up a Greater Manchester fire engine pulled in for their weekly buy, and not one guy was white in color, and the only reason I noticed is that two of the guys are friends, and I asked if Glen was on duty who happens to be white in color.. And for the record if I was to need the fire brigade I wouldn’t care if they where Aliens humpback whale Black White Yellow three legged, I would just be so graceful and thankful for their bravery. All this lady has done is try and make the London Fire Brigade look raciest… She is out of order and needs to understand what damage she could course… And to finish a hart sent message to ALL fire fights , you are heroes…
My gasted has never been so flabbered by Doreen Lawrence’s comments. She has a perfect right to still feel aggrieved at what happened to her son 26 years ago. She doesn’t have the right to smear the LFB with these ignorant and ill informed comments.
People like Doreen, David Lammy and Diane Abbott seem to be able to find racism in everything. It has to stop and it has to stop now. Doreen the way your aspiring (I believe he wanted to be an architect) son was taken from you is a pain that nobody else can understand and I hope that nobody on this earth also has to suffer. But this does not excuse your comments. You have in one misguided comment undone all of the good work that you have done, shame on you.
Kabelo Sebele, I don’t know where you get your warped definition of racism from (I would be very interested to know).
But even by your own definition Doreen Lawrence comments are racist as you don’t get much more powerful than being a member of the House of Lords.
Doreen Lawrence
You are wrong plain & simple
Incredibly insulting & rude
The respect that the public had for you
has just flown out the window.
You should be lambasting the council for allowing flammable cladding to be used on people’s housing not the men & women sent to try and quell a towering inferno. Are you seriously saying there were not fire officers there of ethnic minority ?
Even if you are made or feel bad enough to apologise I can’t believe it would ever be accepted fully because you have shown how you really feel.
You have a right to feel angry & bitter because your family lost a loved one to racist murderers, but you do NOT have the right to say if the block was full of white people the fire brigade would have done more to rescue people.It is a disgusting thing to say.
Yet you stand up with the title & robes of the real racist system but that don’t seem to bother you.
Most high rise buildings are designed as multi compartmented concrete self contained blocks. Each block designed not to allow fire spread from one to another. We can understand from this why certain decisions may have been made if people were informed to stay where they are. A common danger in a high rise flat is that smoke can rise up through a lift shaft and enter all other areas in the building making it difficult if not deadly for people to come out into the landing area and move down the protected stairwells. The change in the outside of the building most certainly defeated the purpose of the fire retarding materials used on the inside. This is of no comfort to the poor peoples families who lost their life in that fire. I am very confident that no Firefighter on the fire ground on that day would have hesitated to rescue anyone that it was in their power to do so. Its disappointing to hear that anyone would have thought otherwise and those opinions will be addressed. Fire fighters love to rescue people. They are compassionate and I have seen them on many, many occasions fight to be the one to wear BA sets and go into the fires. Its difficult to understand for everyday people but it is in their blood.
This woman ought to know better! Her problem is, she is still bitter about the murder of her son, and as a mother, who wouldn’t be? But she has no right whatsoever to suggest white people would have been given more priority when it came to saving lives as the Grefell Towers burnt! Her racist remarks were not only a slur on white firefighters but also on those black firefighters who have [and still do] risked their lives on a daily basis to save lives! Regardless of the color of their skin! It’s deplorable and disgusting how this woman has not been arrested for her racist remarks, because that is what she has shown herself to be a ‘RACIST’ She certainly wasn’t given a peerage for her intelligence but as a mark of respect for apparently fighting racism! Really?! She should be stripped of her honorary peerage and arrested and charged with racist comments. Otherwise what chance do we have of stopping Racism!
racism in reverse if a white person had said this they would have been hounded from pillar to post
…if a white person had said it, he/she would have invoked FREE SPEECH…the get out of jail clause of those of a right-wing racist ideologically leaning.
the lady has opened up a debate, discuss.
don’t be a sheep or a lemming.
Can you just imagine the furour if this was stated by a white person towards a black person!!!!
She is hypocrisy at its finest, as much as people feel incredibly sorry for her loss (although she probably would never believe that either) that is no excuse, this is racism at its finest and should be punishable.
But… her stature dictates it will be ignored as she can do no harm… Completely untouchable…
Baroness Lawrence you should do the honourable thing and resign…
You have proven here to be just as much a part of the problem. You have just as much a massive problem with a non ‘black’ society as any racist person…
As a matter of interest were there no black firefighters then?… You have just accused them of being racist too…..
Strip the stupid woman for her peerage. She obviously hasn’t a clue what she’s talking about. How dare she try to play the race card. Firefighters put their lives on the line every day and I can guarantee none of them look at the colour of your skin before wading in. Shame on you Ms Lawrence.
Remove peerage now. 30 years as a fire officer never made a decision on race, have seen firefighters enter buildings to save kittens birds fish etc. Total insult to true hero’s.
These are very clearly racist remarks and she should be ashamed of herself!
I don’t expect these firefighters had the time to check the occupants race, colour or religion whilst fighting the fire on that fateful day.
The firefighters did what the could under terrible circumstances.
Shocking comments and had she been white it would have been in the press for days.
Typical labour idiot…. Put yourself in the firefighters shoes, do you really think they stood there saying ‘ oh how many whites, how many blacks, should we bother to save them or not.’. Sounds pathetic, put like that, doesn’t it? But that’s what she’s insinuating. What a disgrace to the human race. Why oh why do they always turn it into a race war. It seems to me that she is a total racist. She needs to be stripped of her silly title. And actually what is the title for.. Yes so very sad that she lost a son but so have thousands of others. What gives her the right to have some power and title. If she was white would she!!!!! To Our brave fireman we salute you.
My son is a firefighter and I find her comments extremely hurtful she is just a racist as the monsters who murdered her son how dare she say such a racist thing and get away with it you are no lady you are a disgrace doesn’t she see all the black firefighters there they are all brothers in arms yes as a mother I feel your pain at losing you beloved son and you of all people should know the harm racism causes yet there you stand the biggest racist of all how do you look in the mirror my son does not see anything when running into a burning building but black smoke he’s only thought is to save life what ever colour age gender I hope you never need my sons service
Lola, with those comments you are the problem not the solution, and clearly a troll looking to satisfy your strange need to stir the already flammable pot, Doreen Lawrence’s comments are disgusting racist inciting comments, she should be stripped of her honour and made to apologise publicly
Talking Utter tripe Lola as is Doreen
… i have waited to give the UNCLE TOMS time to come out of their closets.
now out of the fields as chattel but still on their knees to the master and institutions of racialist subjugation feeding on the scraps from the table of conspicuous consumption to be wheeled out as evidence of multicultural diversity then wheeled back under the dust sheets of conformity.
black people need to understand the institutions that exist to perpetuate what was,
open your minds regarding – race denotes colour, not nationality…
remember Windrush…
…black people stand by your black sista.