‘ABOMINABLE’
Singer hits out at treatment of Windrush generation
ACELEBRATED Cardiff singer who lost her Jamaica-raised father and her two brothers in World War II has spoken of her disgust at the treatment of members of the so-called Windrush generation.
Theresa May has apologised for the anxiety suffered by the children of Commonwealth citizens who were threatened by the Home Office with deportation.
There is alarm at reports of how people who were granted leave to remain in the UK, but lacked paperwork have struggled to prove they are not here illegally.
Patti Flynn, who grew up in Cardiff’s docklands and won acclaim as a professional singer, is dismayed at the treatment suffered by people who have made their lives in Britain.
“I just think it’s abominable,” she said.
She argues that people of the Windrush generation – named after the ship The Empire Windrush which brought workers to Britain from the West Indies in 1948 – came here to make a contribution to the UK.
Her father, Wilmott George Young, came to Cardiff in the 1920s from Jamaica.
Both he and her brother, Jocelyn, served as merchant seamen during World War II and lost their lives.
A further brother, Arthur, served in the RAF and died when his Lancaster bomber crashed in 1944.
She said: “People from the Caribbean were invited over after the war to the UK, to help rebuild our bombed and shattered country, while people like my mother had to try to rebuild her and her remaining four children’s lives.
“I think its a scandal and disgusting that members of the Commonwealth countries should be treated the way these people have and it leaves a very worrying situation for people of colour.”
Uzo Iwobi, the chief executive of Race Council Cymru and the chair of Black History Wales, was “shocked and disappointed” at the way people have been treated.
She said: “It beggars belief that our government is willing to cast aside their rights and actually humiliate them by requesting their attendance at police stations – some have been threatened with deportation. The situation
is untenable and we urge the government to take a hard look at itself and the shocking treatment meted out to these community members... We wish to know – is it because they are black?”
Newport East Labour MP Jessica Morden said it was not only people from Jamaica who have struggled to access services. She said: “In my office we’ve been working with constituents from Caribbean countries like Jamaica which have been in the news, but also other Commonwealth countries like Uganda. The Government changes have hit them hard.
“Some have been here for decades on paper visas and some people we’ve been representing have no paperwork. This means they can’t get benefits, access healthcare, and in some cases they have lost their jobs.
“This obviously causes huge anxiety for people who have lived, worked and paid taxes here for many years. It’s also caused great uncertainty about their future immigration
status.”
Mrs Flynn, who now lives in the Fairwater area of Cardiff, is working to ensure that the contribution of Wales’ ethnic minorities to the war effort is not forgotten. She said: “At the moment I am arranging a special day to commemorate the black servicemen from Cardiff, from the Bay, from Butetown who gave their lives during the war.”
Theresa May has told Caribbean Commonwealth leaders she is “genuinely sorry” for the anxiety caused.
Mrs Flynn said: “It should never have happened in the first place. I want to know how these can happen without the majority of the country knowing what’s going on...
“Something’s very wrong in politics. Very, very wrong.”
The Prime Minister said: “This issue has come to light because of measures that we introduced recently to make sure that only those with a legal right to live here can access things like the NHS.
“And this has resulted in some people who – through no fault of their own – [now] needing to be able to evidence their immigration status
“And the overwhelming majority of the Windrush generation do have the documents that they need, but we are working hard to help those who do not.”
Yesterday, Theresa May’s attempt to draw a line under the affair threatened to come unstuck after Labour MP David Lammy disclosed he had been contacted by a woman who arrived from the West Indies in the 1950s and whose son was facing deportation today.
After posting details on Twitter, Mr Lammy said he was contacted by Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes who told him the removal of Mozi Haynes had been halted while his case was reviewed.
The incident – and the speed of the minister’s response – underlined how sensitive the issue has become for the Government.