Standing with Palestine and preparing for Black History Month

The most important time of the year for PCS is our annual delegate conference in May. As the main decision-making body of the union, it is where our policies for the coming year are debated and agreed. I was proud to see a strong presence there of national Black members' committee (NBMC) members.

I thank the outgoing committee members for their support over the past year.  As the new electoral year starts, I look forward to welcoming new committee members and those returning. We have important work ahead to keep us busy.

With Islamophobia on the rise on the street and in the workplace, I was delighted to see conference voting for our union to promote Islamophobia Awareness Month in November. It was also important to see a commitment to updating our anti-racist and anti-fascist strategy in the face of an ascendant far-right.

It was particularly moving to see the unwavering solidarity from delegates with Palestinians and their cause for freedom. Delegates rightly condemned Israel for its genocide in Gaza and called on the government to end arms sales to Israel, enact sanctions, and recognise Palestine as a sovereign, independent state.

The inability of the international community to hold Israel to account for the genocide we are seeing is a stain on the conscience of the world. Not only has a famine been engineered by Israel, but additional atrocities are being committed as residential blocks, refugee camp tents, hospitals, schools, and universities are being targeted for destruction. As Conservative MP Kit Malthouse recently put it, Israel has also replaced the previous aid distribution system in Gaza with “a shooting gallery, an abattoir, where starving people are lured out through combat zones to be shot at”.

PCS is a proud supporter of the Palestinian cause. And we stand firmly with the people of Gaza, no matter what attacks we face.

It is important to remember that 25 May marked the five-year anniversary of the murder in the US of George Floyd by police officers, a murder which sparked an explosion of Black Lives Matters protests across the globe.

As anti-racists, our work is vital to not only expose racism but see it defeated. The least we can do for his memory – alongside all those who have died at the hands of racists – is continue the fight until we win.

In October, we will be marking Black History Month, whose theme this year is ‘Standing Firm in Power and Pride'. As in previous years the NBMC will be meeting to plan our activities.

If you have any ideas or stories to share, please email [email protected]. If you need help, support, or just want a chat, please email me directly [email protected].