On Sunday, residents, trade unions, families, young people and local councillors gathered at Hackney Downs Park to show their support and solidarity for Diane Abbott MP. The crowd listened to powerful, heartfelt speeches and messages of admiration, love and respect felt for Diane. The event was broadcast live by StreetMic.

Guest Speaker Hector Wesley, a member of the National Executive Committee of the PCS union, told the crowds: “PCS Union stands with Diane, our  union is absolutely united in standing with you.”

Cllr Soraya Adejare, speaking on behalf of Stand Up to Racism spoke of the anti-racist work Diane has done in Hackney and across the country: “Every injustice – Diane has been at the forefront challenging it.. Without Diane and the fights she has fought, very few of us would have had the opportunities we have had in society, let alone within the political sphere.”

Michelle Baptiste, TUC Race Relations Committee, said: “We are committed to standing with you.”

George Binette, former Trade Union Liaison Officer in Hackney North and Stoke Newington CLP, said: “We are here today with Diane, because Diane has stood with us for the last 37 years. She has stood on the right side of history, always on the side of organised working class people and on the  picket lines.”

People gathered from Diane’s constituency in Hackney North and Stoke Newington and from across Hackney. Trade unions PCS, RMT, NEU, UNITE were in attendance sharing their support and unwavering solidarity with Diane. They are part of the nearly 13,000 signatories calling for the Labour Party to reinstate Diane Abbott so she can continue to represent the people of Hackney at the next general election.

The event was organised by Hackney residents and hosted by Lucie Scott, former BAME officer for Hackney North and Stoke Newington.

Diane has been repeatedly reelected by her constituents since she first stood in 1987. She has voted against every major cut to welfare for the poor, unemployed and disabled people and has a long standing history opposing racism. She has voted against every major restriction on immigration since she has been in Parliament, including the 2014 Immigration Act, which led directly to the Windrush scandal, as warned by her and others at the time.

Her speech on civil liberties, in the debate on the Counter-Terrorism Bill 2008, won The Spectator magazine’s “Parliamentary Speech of the Year” award, and further recognition at the 2008 Human Rights awards.

Diane has faced levels of racism that have shaken our country and have made international news yet her leadership and commitment to represent the people of Hackney and the UK remains unbreakable, while remaining loyal to the values of the Labour party. We need to see that the Labour Party respects and supports Diane Abbott and is willing to tackle misogynoir and Afriphobia in the wider British society today.

Stand with Diane, join the call to #ReinstateDianeAbbottNOW

Reinstate Diane Petition: https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/reinstate-diane 

Main image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diane_Abbot_MP,_Labour_Party_UK.jpg. Author: Sophie Brown, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.