Black Lives Matter

LNK Statement on BLM

Lives Not Knives is proud of its multi-cultural and diverse team and we consider ourselves a family.

Like so many around the globe we are sickened by the death of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis police force. It will remain an indelible stain on the record of a nation which claims to be the 'Land of the Free'  and signposts how much needs to be done to address and eradicate racism from our societies.   

The Black struggle for equality in America dominates headlines but we cannot be tempted to isolate the problem or regard it as someone else's issue. The disease of racism is very much alive and it continues to infect communities across the globe, including here in the UK, where it denies opportunity and destroys lives. Recent events have already had a profound impact in highlighting this those privileged enough to not experience its everyday reality.

As a knife-crime charity we have our own unadulterated insight into these deep-rooted issues and have seen first-hand their destructiveness. Enough is enough. 2020 must mark a turning point, one which will require a collective, unprecedented, and unstained effort by all to effect radical change.  

Seeing so many people from different walks of life uniting under the banner of Black Lives Matter has been encouraging. The engagement with the movement and global response stands as a beacon of hope that we finally have the momentum to reach our endpoint; to reverse systemic inequality and achieve equality. We do, however, have a long way to go.

LNK hopes that young people are inspired by recent events and can see for themselves the strength and power that comes from uniting and uplifting one another. Eradicating this cancer from our society will take solidarity, unanimity and cohesion. Sitting on the sidelines is not an option and it never should have been. Silence is violence, and to be passive is to be complicit. It is no longer enough to not to be racist, we must be anti-racist.

We also hope that young people and the wider audience assimilate what the Black Lives Matter movement really means; every life is of equal importance. Black Lives do not only Matter when they are murdered by police officers. Every year hundreds of young people are senselessly stabbed and murdered in London, with many of these victims, and perpetrators, being from the black community. These needless stabbings and murders subvert the defining principles of Black Lives Matter, exacerbate the problems and, ultimately, make them even harder to resolve. Black Lives Matter is not a trend that you can selectively adopt and apply. We must continue this momentum. Black Lives Matter is for today, tomorrow, next year, and always. We are so much stronger together, and we must harness our anger and frustration to collaborate and change, rather than destroy.

There are a huge number of ways that you can support the fight for racial justice in America and in the UK either as an individual or as part of a collective movement. Please sign petitions on charge.org, donate and join campaigns and charities fighting for racial justice, support your local black businesses, write to your local MP, and even attend protests. There is always more you can do, and we should all use this time to diversify our social media feeds, educate ourselves about these issues and, most importantly, talk and learn from each other. 

We pray for more days like today. Until there is no longer a need for the days like today.

BLACK LIVES MATTER. ALWAYS.