Page 41 - Urban Kapital DECEMBER DIGITAL ISSUE

POLITICAL POWER

THE VOICE OF THE BLACK BRITISH COMMUNITY

Black voters have the power to change the out- the UK Black population, a suspicious sign that of their skin can still be a trigger for oppression. Pita says he does feel represented, and he does
come of the general election in the UK. needs to be looked at carefully for better under- Marsha. feel everyone is treated equally in the UK, and it
This is what emerged from the recent statistics standing the reasons behind it. is not like other countries where rich people are
on the importance of Black voters, showing the But what did people say really wanted to get out On the other hand, other interviewees pointed placed above the rest of society.
significance of taking the number of black voters of the current General Election? out at the better living conditions they are expe-
even more seriously this year, as they will make From the recent interviews carried out in Not- riencing compared to their native country. “I feel represented because everyone is treat-
the difference. tingham and nearby, all the interviewees firmly ed equally in the UK, not like in Nigeria where
believed that it is essential to go out and vote, in Mateliah Ncube has been living in the UK for 18 rich people really made a difference”. It is not
It is estimated that about 1 over 10 MPs will order to have a say in present and future issues. years, and she claims that Zimbabwe’s political my first-time voting. This time I want somebody
come from a BAME background, and the British and economic situation is everything but rosy. who provides free healthcare for everybody and
Future analysis shows 67 ethnic minority’ MPs But what do Black people really feel about the She said she has seen more equal opportunities more houses for poor people, higher minimum
will stand in Parliament. Even if we are still far country we are living in today? here than what Zimbabwe was offering her. wage, better transport, trams and so on”. Pita,
behind in regard to an equal representation of One 19-year-old woman, Marsha (Not her real is drawn to the Labour party, and tells us why:
ethnic groups within the UK, some steps have name) asserted that it is time to have more di- Apparently, equality seems to be a very delicate
been taken. versity within the highest level of politics, there- but fundamental topic within the Black commu- “Labour interests me because of the minimum
fore “it is important to be educated in politics”. nity, and the question remains, why? wage being raised to 10 pounds, I’m going to
What are the promises that candidates are tell- It’s her first time voting, and Marsha is very vote for them, I think they promise more job op-
ing Black communities? excited because as a young person it’s her first Pita Ukachukwu, a 51-year-old man who origi- portunities”.
From defocused strategies and broken promis- time to have a say in what’s happening in the nally comes from Nigeria, reinforced the idea of
es, the Conservative party aims to give migrants country. having equal opportunities within the country. Do you have an opinion?
job opportunities, no matter where they come “It’s important for people to be educated about Visit: www.powellandbarnsmedia.com
from, they will have the possibility to work. the political parties and generally about poli-
This suggests that the Tories have abandoned tics”. Says Marsha.
the idea of lowering the immigration flow, even
if we already know politicians are very good at She is not willing to say who she is going to vote
changing their minds. for. But tells me she thinks that we need more
diversity in the government so that black people
On the other hand, Labours aim is to promote so- can be represented. She adds:
cial justice, enhancing the NHS that for Labour, “I want Brexit to be revoked because it is caus-
will need to be free and accessible to everybody ing a lot of unnecessary debate throughout the
in the country. They also support the tax reduc- whole process. Nothing was really wrong be-
tions and specific borrowings. But what about fore, so why do we need this change?
Liberal Democratics and BAME? And Greens?
Farage? Nothing has been firmly said concern- Marsha hopes to see more Black MP’s but she is
ing Black communities. Nevertheless, even the not confident about that.
intentions of both the Tories and Labour seem to
avoid having any specific focus on BAME people. “I would like to see more black representation
but I know that is not the focus of the election,
Looking back at the last 2017 General Election but that is sad because it definitely should be
campaign, who was the most popular party for because black people don’t have the same priv-
Black communities? According to data, the La- ileges as white people in the UK”. // BLACK VOTERS
bour party was the preferred one with 77% of MAKE THE
votes, accounting for 1 Labour voter over 5. The She says she does not “feel represented by the
Conservatives reached 1 voter over 20, and only government because the majority of the deci- DIFFERENCE IN
a little but significant percentage supporting the sion made come from white middle class” men,
Brexit party. Within this framework, it is impor- so she feels she can’t identify with them. 2019 ELECTIONS
tant to underline also that only 1 over 4 BAME In fact, 1 in 3 people claim they are not happy
MAGAZINE // 40 Electoral Commission, counting up to a 25% of ticularly regarding the fact the colour MAGAZINE // 41
people is registered to vote according to the
with what is currently happening in the UK, par-

By: Chiara Rambaldi