Doreen Lawrence has said a government-commissioned report on racial disparities could allow racism to flourish and has pushed the fight against racism back by 20 years or more. The mother of Stephen Lawrence, who was murdered by racists in 1993, was speaking hours after the publication of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) report.
Lady Lawrence said: “My son was murdered because of racism and you cannot forget that. Once you start covering it up it is giving the green light to racists.” She said the report denied the reality of structural racism, including the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on ethnic minority communities and the 18-year struggle for justice for her son.
The 258-page report claimed the term “structural racism” was “too liberally used” and that factors such as socioeconomic background, culture and religion had a greater impact on life chances. Shortly after publication, the government admitted that a “considerable number” of people giving evidence – particularly from ethnic minorities – had told the commission that structural racism was a real problem.
Speaking at a virtual event organised by De Montfort University’s Stephen Lawrence research centre, Lady Lawrence said the report was “not in touch with reality” and denied the experiences of young people subjected to stop and search. She and her solicitor Imran Khan had campaigned for 18 years to secure convictions against two of Stephen’s murderers. The 1999 Macpherson inquiry into the police investigation concluded that the Metropolitan Police was institutionally racist.
Her comments came on the day a British police officer, PC Ben Hannam, became the first to be convicted of belonging to a neo-Nazi terrorist organisation. Downing Street did not wish to comment on Lady Lawrence’s criticisms. A government spokesperson said the government would respond to the commission’s recommendations “in due course”.
