2020 may have been something of a wipe out for many. It has certainly not been an easy year for Brits coping with the twin impact of Covid 19 (now with the new more contagious strain) and Brexit.
For Chinese Liberal Democrats, we started out the year quite oblivious to what was to come, ushering in the Year of the Rat at the National Liberal Club with our AGM and Chinese New Year celebrations on 30th January. Dr Yeow Poon, our Chair, was the key note speaker, expounding the relevance of liberal democracy in the world today.
Yet it was not quite an annus horribilis, as colleagues and friends would testify. Here were some of the highlights:
Covid 19 led to a rise in racism against the Chinese and East Asians in the UK. A few members of CLD decided to establish CARG (Covid19 Anti Racism Group) to lobby the media against using images of Chinese people whenever there were reports relating to the pandemic. We also held our first webinar with the Paddy Ashdown on “Covid 19 and Racism” in May with speakers former LibDem Councillor Linda Chung and Parliamentary Candidate Dr George Lee.
CLDs had also supported the Black Lives Matter movement following the tragic killing of African America, George Floyd.
To quote Vice-Chair Cllr Sarah Cheung Johnson:
Racism isn’t just being called names in the street or being followed around a shop because you’re black. It’s being honest that we do not live in an equal society now, in 2020. That 48% of BAME children live in poverty not because of prejudice but because our society is fundamentally, structurally racist. This is absolutely not the same as saying most British people are racist.