The ruling last week by the High Court that the Home Office’s handling of some Windrush citizenship applications has been ‘irrational’ and ‘unlawful’ makes clear that the Home Office have not adopted the recommendations and the spirit of the Lessons Learned Review by Wendy Williams – which the Tony Sewell’s race report completely fails to acknowledge and endorse. The very fact that the Home Office are now appealing against this important judgment demonstrates that there is no desire or commitment to right the wrongs.
Also there is no respect in valuing the death of Hubert along Sarah O’Connor, Paulette Wilson, Dexter Bristol, and many others that families are still grieving and still fighting for justice and compensation reflect that Black Lives Don’t Matter!
I remember meeting Hubert Howard on several occasions in Hackney where we both live prior to his death. He was campaigning to fight for his status along other when the Home Office introduce ‘Good Character’ which is a loaded term in the context of racism and exclusion further reinforces the hostile environment policy which is based on fear and intimidation.
It also further hight lights the role of legal assistance and court action is required to make the Home Office accountable. Lawyers like Connie Sozi, Jacqueline McKenzie, Grace Brown, Leslie Thomas, and many others plus growing number of Windrush Advice clinics are playing an important role in fighting for the human rights of the Windrush Generation and their families.
In addition, I believe that the Windrush Scheme needs to be removed from the Home Office to be an independent arm’s length agency and I have launched a petition which almost 60,0000 people have signed to support this campaign: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/improve-the-compensation-scheme-for-windrush-survivors-and-family-members
How much more evidence do we need to prove there is no accountability or scrutiny in resolving the Windrush Scandal after three years despite a Windrush Cross Government Advisory Group. I hope that the Home Affairs Select Committee, Public Accounts Committee and National Audit Office step up their investigations and reviews in the conduct and behaviour of the Home Office and culture Anti Blackness which is pervasive in gaslighting the victims and families of the scandal.
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It is important that the “Separate but equal” philosophy that underpins the so called Windrush Compensation Scheme is recognised for what it is and called out. It is the product of conscious bias and a deeply racist section of our UK Civil Service. This is not the statutory compensation scheme people thought they were getting. It does not have the judicial oversight or speed of processing of claims people deserve. It is a lame ex Gratia scheme. This means payment is entirely discretionary and made on the basis of no admission of wrong or liability. So people have through this Schemes existence been blocked or had delay built in to prevent them from going to court. Because the court would have award real Compensation taking account of their full past and future loss. The court would also have handled evidence on balance of probability and through legal aid people would be able to get medical reports etc. The question is has the Home Office through this ex Gratia scheme in effect blocked peoples right to real justice?
The Cross Government committees are a toothless fasade. They were unable to respond at a recent public event as to what is being done about the effects still being experienced as a result of the Hostile environment. Agree with this campaign. We need to step up the pressure.
I think it’s a disgrace the way this government is treating the windrush victims, what I’m feeling is that they don’t think we deserve any compensation at all, and they hoping to give us as little as possible, because when the home office telling me they trying to give what they can, I think theyre going by this mindset they are giving us hand outs I had to say to the home office that it’s not a hand out, it’s what you’ve taking away from me because of institutional RASISIM. Ten years of my life they took away the best years of my life. We need to sort it out away from the home office as soon as possible.
Black people of Caribbean origin have never been welcome in the UK. The “hostile environment” policy might not have been intended expel elderly black Caribbean people. However, I believe that when the Home Office came across this unexpected ”low lying fruit” there was much rejoicing. Instead of relaxing the policy to make it easier for long standing black residents to remain in the UK, it appears that it was tightened. After all, there were illegal immigrant expulsion targets to achieve! The Home Office and Theresa May knew that we were not illegal immigrants, but that did not matter for black people. I understand that the Home Office requested ten documents for every year of residence in the UK. In my case that would amount to
500 documents. The older the person, the greater the burden of proof. ”There but for the grace of God go I”
Dennis Hall
DexterBristol is my half brother I was looking for him a long time I never met him I was told by my dad