Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Councillors unite to condemn racism
North Lanarkshire has formally given its backing to the Black Lives Matter movement and says the authority will “work to ensure that all residents are able to live their lives free from racism or discrimination of any form”.
The council is understood to be among the first in the UK to have made such an official endorsement, after its members unanimously agreed the motion tabled by Labour depute leader Paul Kelly and SNP equalities officer Junaid Ashraf.
It will now see a new working group including representatives of the BAME community being set up to tackle all forms of racial injustice – and will also review all the statues, historical symbols, buildings or schools in the area for their history and context.
The new cross-party committee will examine the school curriculum, with a separate motiion also agreed at the meeting to include more teaching on “the unadulterated history of our country with all its blemishes including our involvement in wars, colonialism and the transatlantic slave economy”.
North Lanarkshire’s official motion states that it“recognises the objectives of the Black Lives Matter movement [and] understands the racial tensions which have been heightened and brought sharply into focus by the horrific death of George Floyd in the US.
“There is no place for racism. Further action must be taken to eliminate racial injustice and discrimination in Scotland, but efforts to end discrimination have been inadequate and many residents of
North Lanarkshire continue to suffer racism and racial inequality daily.”
Councillor Ashraf said:“This is truly the proudest moment of my political career. North Lanarkshire is leading Scotland in race equality and I cannot wait for us all to make a success of this.”
Councillor Kelly added:“Rather than just state that we support the Black Lives Matter movement, we are taking a very significant step forward to take action to tackle all forms of racism.”