Authored by Zakiya Atom-Ra, Maria Patsalos, Molly Javangwe and Madni Chaudhary.
The arrival of MV Empire Windrush is one of those iconic moments in Britain’s history. It’s hard to imagine the experiences of those men, women, and children, staring out over Tilbury Docks after crossing the ocean. Waiting to walk down the gangway, to start their new lives on British soil.
The Windrush Generation represents so much more than those fleeting moments over 70 years ago. It has come to stand for migration to Britain from the Caribbean and for the rich and diverse society that we call our own. At this time in our country’s story, it is more important than ever for us to take a moment out of our busy lives to celebrate and reflect on our shared history.
This year marks 73 years since the Empire Windrush docked in Britain and we can’t think of a better way to honour and celebrate the many Caribbean people that made the brave journey to England by announcing vLex’s first partnership with Mishcon De Reya for D&I initiatives. As part of the partnership, vLex will be championing The Black Justice Project.
The Black Justice Project
Mishcon de Reya, in partnership with The Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre, launched the Black Justice Project in 2020. The project’s aim is to tackle race discrimination and address the lack of legal advice to the Black community, specifically focussing on the community’s needs and the pervasive long term discrimination that leads to ever-restricting access to justice.
The Black Justice Project offers free legal advice to members of the Black community. It helps those who have faced employment discrimination and those who have potential claims under the Equality Act. The project also supports people who have a potential civil action against the police for false imprisonment, unlawful detention, and loss of liberty. Thirdly, the project supports people who are part of the Windrush generation, and their children, to regularise their immigration position in the UK. The clinic can also assist the Windrush generation with applying for financial compensation through the Windrush Compensation Scheme because of losses suffered. This includes cases of people being denied employment, housing, or where people may have mistakenly been detained or threatened with deportation. This article will focus on Windrush, in particular.
The “Windrush” generation generally comprises of individuals that arrived in the UK from Caribbean countries between the late 1940s and early 1970s. These individuals were entitled to live and work in the UK because many of their native countries formed part of the British Commonwealth at the time. However, over time, many of these individuals lacked official paperwork to evidence their legitimate entry and stay in the UK, which led to a number of these citizens being denied their legal rights, being wrongly detained or in some cases even deported from the UK. The term “Windrush” originates from the HMT Empire Windrush ship which was one of the first large vessels to transport these individuals to the UK to fill UK labour shortages in 1948.
The scandal involving the treatment of some members of the Windrush generation began to surface in 2017 and it became a national issue. A large number of the individuals that had been discriminated against had initially taken up work in the UK as nurses, drivers, manual workers, and cleaners, and there was general outrage at the treatment of Black Britons who had been prejudiced by flaws in the UK’s immigration system.
In response to this scandal, the Windrush Scheme was launched on 30 May 2018. It has been designed to formalise the procedure by which individuals can have their individual immigration status confirmed or resolved. The scheme allows individuals falling within the relevant parameters to formally evidence their immigration status in the UK and/or to apply for British citizenship. In April 2019, the Home Office launched the Windrush compensation scheme for those affected by the Windrush affair. Claims for compensation will be open until at least 2 April 2023.
The Black Justice Project operates via The Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre which is a student law clinic. Mishcon de Reya solicitors supervise undergraduate law students to advise individuals on their legal position. All letters of advice are reviewed and signed off by a solicitor from Mishcon de Reya or barrister from Doughty Street Chambers.
Client Quote: “It was good to explain our situation to someone who could give us advice from a legal perspective without the emotional attachment. […] advice given was very clear. QMLAC is a valuable resource […] particularly for individuals who may find the cost of engaging a lawyer prohibitive.”
Student Quote: “[…] George Floyd’s murder in 2020 and the protests that followed uncovered a lot of truths that Black people had already experienced first-hand. Being able to directly help those affected by police misconduct or workplace discrimination has been something I’m incredibly proud of, helping other Black people feel empowered through the law instead of alienated by it.”
You can find more detail here if you have any questions or know someone who may need help.
Windrush Day 2021 was originally published in vLex News and Updates on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.