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British lawmakers are debating a bill that would give police greater authority to curb protests. The legislation comes amid a series of ongoing protests regarding violence toward women and the abuse of police power.

A small vigil for Sarah Everard in Sheffield, England, one of many throughout the U.K. Tim Dennell. CC BY 2.0

The U.K. Parliament is currently debating a bill that would outlaw any protest that causes “serious annoyance,” brought forward by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill could see protesters facing prison sentences of up to 10 years and would limit the right to protest outside of Parliament.

The second reading of the bill took place on March 16, just days after police physically restrained people attending a peaceful vigil for Sarah Everard. Everard, a 33-year-old marketing executive, disappeared from a busy London street on March 3 and her remains were later found in Kent. On March 12, police officer Wayne Couzens was arrested and charged with Everard’s kidnapping and murder.

Everard’s murder sparked a number of protests calling for action to prevent violence against women. Many women shared their own stories of harassment. Vigils were also organized in Everard’s honor, including one on Clapham Common, a park near where Everard was last seen. Police warned against holding a vigil at this location due to COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings, but the vigil proceeded. Hundreds came to peacefully pay tribute to Everard and stand in solidarity against violence toward women. In the evening, police arrived at the vigil and began handcuffing attendees. Four women were arrested. Footage and photos of the police physically restraining women, forcing them to the ground and leading them into police vans began circulating on social media, leading to a new round of protests, this time focused on the police.

Protesters gathered outside London police headquarters on March 14 before proceeding to another rally outside of Parliament, where they called for the resignations of Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick and British Home Secretary Priti Patel. Protests continued the next day and are ongoing.

On March 16, as protests continued outside Parliament, lawmakers inside the building allowed the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill to proceed to the next stage of debate. A Downing Street spokesperson insisted that the bill will not infringe upon people’s right to protest peacefully, but the vague language of the bill has many worried about how loosely it will be interpreted. If passed, the bill would give police much greater authority to curb protests that cause “serious disruption” or “serious annoyance” to passersby, terms which could be applied to nearly any protest.

The bill has faced widespread criticism and is regarded by many as an attack on civil liberties. Over 150 organizations sent an open letter to Patel, who oversees U.K. law enforcement, expressing their opposition to the legislation.

Parliament member Gavin Robinson voiced the concerns held by many protesters regarding the bill, saying that, “Protests will be noisy, protests will disrupt and no matter how offensive we may find the issue at their heart, the right to protest should be protected.”

Rather than listening to protesters’ concerns about violence against women and the abuse of police power, the government instead has focused its resources on limiting citizens’ voices.

As voices of the Black Lives Matter movement flooded American streets, British proponents alike rushed to rally. The seeds of the movement germinated in the U.K., but problems soon sprung up alongside them.

Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol, England. KSAG Photography. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

In late May, the death of George Floyd ignited outrage in nations across the world, including in the United Kingdom. In the early summer months, the pages of social media and eager British ralliers mirrored the zeal of the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States. However, over the course of a few short months, the unmatched vigor of the movement in Britain quickly dropped off; neither the media channels nor the once fiery minds of residents continued active coverage and support.

What had started as weekly protests in Britain’s largest cities had dissolved into a deferred dream for a few young activists. As more racial inequalities surfaced, less and less government engagement was found.

Regardless of this obstacle, the young remaining supporters continue their fight with the unbattered zeal of seasoned activists. A few such activists are the founders of All Black Lives U.K., which is a movement started this past May by a group of students. The group organized protests for 10 weeks this summer and has since made substantial headway; its outreach, primarily made through social media and hosted panels, has garnered enough engagement to establish posts in other urban areas such as Bristol and Manchester.

The movement pushes for a list of demands to be met by the government, which includes the removal of the highly scrutinized “gangs matrix.”

The gangs matrix is a database that has been run by the Metropolitan Police since 2012 following the 2011 London riots. The database contains the names of “gang nominals,” or people whose online activity has been flagged for suspected gang affiliation. The Metropolitan Police advertised the database as a tool to combat violence in London, but many studies found that its standards have resulted in the disproportionate representation of young Black males. Thus, All Black Lives U.K. believes that the abolition of this database will remove a racist stronghold in the government.

Aside from more obvious racial discrimination, many protesters think that the U.K. suffers from a profound lack of diversity. The movement continues to fight for increased inclusion of Black voices in local councils, as well as diversity in the national school curriculum. Campaigns have been launched to modify what is included in the national curriculum, specifically in order to make learning Black history compulsory. Proponents intend for this modification to fairly represent the Black population while creating a more well-rounded picture of the nation’s history for all students. The education campaigns were met with immediate backlash, with claims by educators that this change is too closely tied to political extremism.

With several months of tumult having reshaped the face of racial discussions in the U.K., there is little that the British government has changed to address the issue. However, the few brave faces trailblazing the movement keep pressing on, calling others to educate themselves in the meantime.

To Get Involved

To sign up to volunteer for the Black Lives Matter movement in the UK, click here.

To find out more about the Black Lives Matter movement in the UK, click here.

To become a partner or sponsor for the movement in the UK, click here.