Brighton Town Hall and the Brighton Centre are being lit up in purple in support of the World Against Racism day of action on Saturday and the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Sunday.

The UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on March 21st, the day that police in Sharpeville, South Africa opened fire and killed 69 men, women and children, injuring hundreds more, at a peaceful demonstration against apartheid ‘Pass Laws’ in 1960.

The theme of this year’s day is ‘Youth standing up against racism’ and UK online events organised by the TUC & Stand Up to Racism including a twitterstorm and an online rally with a fantastic list of speakers will be held on this weekend on Saturday 20^th.

Young people locally in Brighton and Hove, as well as nationally and internationally showed massive support for the 2020 Black Lives Matter marches. On the streets, many teens and twenty-somethings came together to protest against racial injustice. On social media, the young did much to mobilise participation, calling on their peers to stand up and speak out for the equal rights of all. This activism was even more amazing given the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the light it too shone on the stark inequalities faced by our Black and Minority Ethnic residents.

https://www.tuc.org.uk/events/world-against-racism-online-rally-un-anti-racism-day-0

Brighton & Hove City Council has pledged to be an anti-racist council, committed to actively challenging inequality and dismantling racist structures. We recognise how much there is to do and how crucial it is to shine light on our own behaviour to bring meaningful change.

We are committed to the council’s anti-racism strategy and to working with our residents, communities and organisation to make Brighton & Hove an anti-racist city.

Councillor Amanda Evans, Labour’s lead spokesperson for equalities
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Image: UN