We have a podcast & stories from Black, Asian and Arab communities in the UK you shouldn't have missed this week curated by Melissa Sigodo
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We now have a podcast!
This week, I launched The Thread podcast where I recap the week’s most impactful stories from the newsletter. If you have any thoughts on any of the stories shared, drop me a voice note so I can include it on the podcast.
You can have a listen to the latest episode on the Windrush scandal, Black maternity care and Daniel Anjorin.
Without further ado, I've cut through the noise so you don't have to.
Here are the stories you shouldn't have missed this week.
Policing
A Met Police officer Perry Lathwood, 50, who “manhandled” a Black woman in front of her young son and wrongly arrested her over bus fare evasion in Croydon, London, has been found guilty of assault. The Met police later said despite the verdict, they would continue to “support the officer.” Full story
A TV commentator, Narinder Kaur says she was left horrified when actor Laurence Fox posted an upskriting photo of her on social media. The mum-of-two says she reported it to the Met police but claims there has been ‘no update’ which she said left her feeling ‘fobbed off.” Full story
A Merseyside firearms police officer, PC Daniel Johnson who sent racist and homophobic messages, drank alcohol at the pub while on duty, threw a birthday party during Covid lockdown and stole property from work has been sacked. Full story
Health
A councillor from one of the most diverse boroughs in the country has said that there were ‘not enough black voices high up contributing’ to the birth trauma inquiry which called for an overhaul of maternity and postnatal care. Southwark’s Evelyn Akoto who is heading a commission into inequalities in maternity said the topic of race was highlighted ‘low down’ in the report even though Black women are 3.7 times more likely to die in pregnancy and childbirth than white women. Full story
Housing
A wheelchair using mum says she now ‘lives in fear’ after being ‘trapped in her flat for nearly five weeks and having to cancel midwife appointments while pregnant after housing association A2Dominion failed to fix the lifts for her and other disabled tenants. Full story
A woman who moved to London from York says that estate agents asked her what kind of food she cooked and if she smoked weed right before viewings. Paris, 25, says her passport was ‘inspected’ and landlords openly told her they had had issues with Black tenants. Full story
Immigration and asylum
UPDATE: The family of a ‘local legend’ refused the right to remain in the UK despite living here for 46 years has now surpassed their GoFundMe target by raising over £35,000 for his legal fight to stay in the country. Full story
A teenage asylum seeker, Ismael Maolanzadeh, 19, took his own life after ‘falling into depression while facing the threat of being deported to Rwanda’ his brother has said. The pair fled Iran and crossed the Channel to the UK in a small boat. His sibling is now demanding an investigation into his death. Full story
The government has been warned it could see a repetition of the Windrush scandal which saw Black Britons from former colonies wrongly detained and threatened with deportation. The Home Office set a deadline for immigrants to swap their physical permits for digital visas which prove the right to work, live and claim benefits in the UK. A trial request for people to make the change has seen emails go to people’s lawyers instead of them directly. Full story
A disabled man who suffered two strokes leaving him with speech problems has been threatened with removal from the UK. Anthony Olubunmi George, 61, who came from Nigeria in 1986 and has not left since says he no longer has friends or family in the West African country but the Home Office has refused his request to remain. Full story
Education
A couple from Thornton Heath have achieved their goal of setting up a school in Ghana using their own savings and a loan after having the vision 20 years ago. Teacher Moses Mensah and his wife Philomena say they wanted to give kids the ‘opportunities they didn’t have’ growing up. They are asking for donations so they can acquire a new water purification system, a new coach and funding to repair their computers which keep breaking down. Full story
Nigerian students have been kicked out of Teesside University after their country’s currency plummeted wiping out their tuition money. One student who paid the debt was still told to leave the UK with no right to appeal after the university refused to re-enrol her. Full story
Legal
A teacher who held a placard depicting PM Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman with coconuts under a tree at a beach has been charged with a racially aggravated public order offence. Marieha Hussain carried the sign at a Pro-Palestine march calling for ceasefire. Full story
Terry Eury who followed women through Romford high street calling them ‘Muslim c***s & ‘terrorists’ has avoided jail. The 56-year-old who pleaded guilty said he was ‘under the influence of alcohol’ and ‘did not remember’ the incident. Full story
A man who attacked ‘kind-hearted’ Johanita Dogbey, 31, while out shopping for her mum in Brixton, London, has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 32 years. Mohamed Nur, 34, admitted to her murder and was found guilty of three other attacks two days before. Full story
A patient who tried to kill a mental health nurse, Kazeema Afzal, by strangling her until she blacked out has been jailed for 13 years. Kieffer Sutton, 25, had previously headbutted a member of hospital staff and stomped on the stomach of someone recovering from surgery. The mum-of-two is now considering moving abroad after suffering PTSD and worrying “something sinister will happen.” Full story
Grenfell
Victims of the Grenfell tower fire which saw 72 people killed must wait until end of 2026 for a decision to be made on criminal charges almost a decade since the devastating fire. 19 companies and organisations are being investigated for potential criminal offences. Full story
Slavery
A prominent Cambridge academic has said that the United Kingdom which he described as “the leading slaving nation in the world”, owes the Caribbean £205 billion in reparations for slavery. Rev Dr Michael Banner added that descendants of the enslaved Africans should also recieve compensation. Full story
Disabilty
The Equality and Human Rights Commission will assess whether cases including that of a man who died by starvation when his benefits were stopped, amount to unlawful discrimination by the Department for Work and Pensions, after the government launched an investigation over claims that disabled people were mistreated. Full story
World News
A Ghanaian toddler has been recognised as the world's youngest male painter at the age of one after selling nine paintings which led qualified him for the Guinness World Record. Ace-Liam Nana Sam Ankrah’s artist mother said she realised her son’s talent when he was just six months old after she needed to keep him busy while she worked. Full story
Notice Board
The voter registration deadline for the UK GeneralElection is 18 June and there are approximately 8 million people missing or incorrectly registered who might miss out. Register here: https://gov.uk/register-to-vo
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