“Perhaps the most damning statistic of all is that 69% of children arrested in London belong to Black, Asian or mixed-ethnicity youth. This figure stands in sharp contrast to their demographic representation in the capital, underscoring the reality of a culture of racial profiling that is subject all to the devastating consequences of a culture of apartheid-style policing and Jim Crow justice” – Lee Jasper.

The strip-search of Child Q – a Black 15-year-old girl at a London school in 2020 by two female officers without another adult present, and the police killing of Chris Kaba in September 2022, a 24-year-old father has reignited a national conversations about racism within the British police force.

The Met was placed under “special measures” in 2022, and an independent review commissioned by Baroness Louise Casey found that the Metropolitan Police was institutionally racist, misogynist, and homophobic.

The report, published in March, was damning: ‘The UK’s biggest police force, which has more than 34,000 officers, had failed to safeguard the public from misogynistic officers, and staff routinely experienced sexism.”

This event will delve into important discussions surrounding the experiences of Black children and the Metropolitan Police.

Participate in this crucial conversation as we explore ways to support and protect Black young children from racial profiling and adultification. Ensuring a trauma-informed approach is reflected in safeguarding policies is critical. This is an opportunity to develop and set out our demands for a new monitoring, scrutiny and oversight framework, and to help create a charter of demands that protects and supports Black children’s experience of systemic police racism.

Register to attend here

Illustration: Jonell Joshua for NPR