News

This week started the long-awaited inquest into the death-in-custody of Sean Rigg, a popular Brixton musician.

Nearly four years after his death in August 2008, the inquest begins following determined campaigning from the Rigg family for more openness and transparency from the Met Police and the IPCC amidst claims that key information had been unfairly withheld.

Last night, England played its first game of the Euro 2012 tournament. Leading up to this tournament there has been much talk of how Black players and citizens would be subject to the persecution of their racist hosts. The Panorama programme exposed shocking levels of racism within the host nations, and the monkey chants toward Black players during Holland’s practice sessions a few days ago demonstrates that those concerns are all too real.

Abid Hussain might have expected the national media to give some praise for the relentless work he has done over the years in fostering greater community cohesion particularly between young Muslims and wider society.

For example, recently he hosted a reception for a young persons leadership course that set out to nurture young Muslim leaders. He told the would-be leaders,

As there has ever been a recent international football competition that has been marred by so much racism?

Last night Mario Balotelli, the Italian forward, was subject to a torrid of monkey chants from Spanish supporters.

Michael Steele from Wells, Somerset who was there said:

Contrary to the declaration in the Daily Mail that the Archbishop Rowan Williams had ‘misjudged the political mood’ in his trenchant call to the powerful and privileged in his Jubilee congregation to stand up against the “ludicrous financial greed, of environmental recklessness, of collective fear of strangers and collective contempt for the unsuccessful and marginal”, his message has proved to be prophetic.

As Jamaica simultaneously celebrates the Diamond Jubilee and its 50th year of independence the country’s Prime Minister has signalled that Jamaica will become a Republic.

Marking the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in Jamaica with tributes, gospel songs and flag waving the Montego Bay Mayor told the crowd,

As we celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee, let us not forget our progress in the last 60 years, as we also celebrate our own milestone of 50 years as an Independent nation.

Imagine you had £2 in your pocket. What would you do with it? Spend it on a lottery ticket? Well not business entrepreneur Dr Rami Ranger MBE. Equipped with only £2 and an office which was actually a shed, Ranger has become one of the UK’s outstanding business leaders, turning his £2 into a multi million pound global empire.

As speculation mounts as to whether Greece will leave the eurozone, the beleaguered country serves as a stark warning of how racial scapegoating can quickly surface in times of economic and political uncertainty.

Last week, two newly elected MPs from the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party were among six people arrested over an attack on a Pakistani man in Athens. MPs from the Golden Dawn Party, Ilias Panagiotaros and Ioannis Vouldis were briefly held alongside the daughter of Nikos Michaloliakos, Golden Dawn's leader, but were later released.

Krupesh Hirani, a graduate of the OBV & CLG Parliamentary Shadowing Scheme wrote on his application that ‘I may be young…. but I am by no means inexperienced’ and considering all that he’s achieved at the tender age of 26, this statement rings all too true. Last month, the OBV graduate made political history becoming the country’s youngest Cabinet Member at local government level.

Just 24 hours after the Met Police released the findings of its own review which could find no evidence of police corruption in the Stephen Lawrence murder, Home Secretary Theresa May has ordered an independent review into allegations that police corruption shielded Lawrence’s killers.

Mrs May has over-ruled Scotland Yard, which said its own inquiries into the corruption claims found no new evidence that would warrant a further investigation.