Tag Archives: roderick lynch

The Voice

Christine Jardine urges Government to appoint Independent Advisor on Islamophobia

By The Voice | Wed 7th August 2024 - 9:33 am

Lib Dem Equalities Spokesperson Christine Jardine has written to Women and Equalities Minister Anneliese Dodds to welcome the work the Government has done so far in measures to support Muslim communities and urging them to go further by filling the post of Independent Advisor on Islamophobia that the Conservatives left vacant for two years.

The text of her letter is below:

Dear Anneliese,

I wish to share my concerns about the shocking violent Islamophobia unfolding on our streets and urge early action to fill the position of Independent advisor on Islamophobia left vacant for two years by the previous Conservative Government.

Like the rest of the country, I am deeply distressed by the riots, violence and disorder we have seen in recent days. A small minority of far-right extremists have exploited the unfathomable tragedy in Southport to commit appalling acts of violence, targeting Muslims, asylum seekers and communities of colour.

I fully support your government in calling the motivation behind some of this violence what it is – Islamophobia.

Racism and Islamophobia have no place in our society. Everyone has the right to feel safe in their homes, communities and places of worship. I and my Liberal Democrat colleagues utterly condemn this violence.

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Floella Benjamin marks Windrush Day with event in Parliament

By LDHQ Diversity team | Thu 22nd June 2023 - 7:30 am

Windrush Day is celebrated on 22 June every year. HMT Empire Windrush arrived in Britain on 22 June 1948. On board were more than 800 passengers from the Caribbean.

This June marks 75 years since that voyage. It is a major national moment, a chance to come together and celebrate this shared history.

Last week, Liberal Democrat Baroness Floella Benjamin met with successful black business owners to commemorate this event. A heartwarming and empowering afternoon spent in Parliament, talking about personal experiences being a second and third generation of Windrush.

Special thanks to Baroness Floella Benjamin, Roderick Lynch from the Lib Dem Campaign for Racial Equality (LDCRE), the London Diversity team, Craig O’Donnell, London Regional Development Officer and staff members involved in organising the event.

London Diversity and Inclusion Leader William Houngbo said:

On 15th June, Nicole Turner (HQ Diversity & Inclusion), Roderick Lynch (LDCRE) and I went to parliament with 23 Afro-Caribbean London based business owners, to attend our Liberal Democrat Windrush parliamentary reception with Baroness Floella Benjamin. We celebrated the Windrush 75th anniversary.
Baroness Floella Benjamin made an inspiring and powerful speech.

Many of us who were in the room will remain impacted by it the rest of our lives.

Roderick Lynch said:

As a 2nd Generation member of the Windrush Community I was honoured to be at the House of Lords to hear Baroness Floella Benjamin delivered an impassioned recital of her journey and arrival in the U.K. aboard the Empire Windrush.

The 75th Anniversary reception was attended by approximately 23 Black Business Owners who I proudly now call Lib Dem members and supporters.

Attendees including myself was brought to tears listening to Floella’s journey. As a member of the Windrush community I’m very much aware of tales such as this. Nothing prepared me for what I was about to hear, albeit when Floella said we are going to hear “real talk” I should have known something was coming.

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Caron Lindsay

“It’s a matter of life and death” LDCRE Chair Roderick Lynch on Black Lives Matter protests

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 7th June 2020 - 12:47 pm

The chair of Liberal Democrats for Racial Equality Roderick Lynch was on Politics England today talking about the Black Lives Matter protests taking part around England.  Why are people taking to the streets in the middle of a pandemic?

He talked about how inequality in housing and health and higher rates of poverty are a matter of life and death every day for black people.

When you think about it like that, you can understand their need to highlight how tough life is and how much of the burden of the inequalities in our society they are being forced to bear.

An article in today’s Observer shows how BAME people and single parents are taking the hardest financial hit from the pandemic. And when they were already struggling long before Covid-19 took over our lives.

Approaching half – 44% – of non-BAME individuals whose working hours have declined during the crisis have been furloughed, while 7% have found themselves unemployed.

By contrast, only 31% of BAME workers who have experienced a drop in the hours they are working have been furloughed, while more than 20% have lost their jobs.

BAME household earnings have fallen from an average £441 a week to £404 over the course of the crisis. Non-BAME groups saw their average weekly earnings fall from £547 to £503.

And single parents have faced an eye-watering fall in their weekly incomes:

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Caron Lindsay

Party awards for Lizzie Jewkes, Roderick Lynch, Alice Bridges-Westcott and Bernard Greaves

By Caron Lindsay | Sun 22nd September 2019 - 12:20 pm

One of the best bits of Federal Conference is that bit just before the Leader’s Speech (before the bit where they pass round buckets and demand all your money like you have any left at the end of Conference) where the Party President announces the winners of the Party Awards.

It was great to see some fantastic people honoured this year:

First up was the Patsy Calton Award, awarded by Liberal Democrat Women in honour of Patsy Calton, our much loved MP for Cheadle who died in 2005.

Sal said:

The winner has been a party activist, parliamentary candidate, and member of a number of party bodies, including Lib Dem Women.
She has achieved what few do. She challenged UK government policy in relation to tax, through her speeches and work in the Liberal Democrats.

At one conference she spoke about the potential to lift ordinary men and women out of poverty, by changing the income tax threshold, persuading Conference to make it party policy, and it was also in the 2010 Manifesto.

David Cameron famously mocked the idea until, in coalition, the idea was taken up through meetings with Conservative Ministers, who eventually agreed to make the change.

For ordinary people, particularly low-paid women, this has been an amazing and effective way to help families and part-time workers.

For her outstanding contribution, the nomination for the Patsy Calton Award is made to the amazing Lizzie Jewkes.

The Harriet Smith Award is open to any member who has never achieved elected office, but has served our cause with excellence and commitment.

I was thrilled to see Roderick Lynch, Chair of the Lib Dem Campaign for Racial Equality win.

This year the winner of the Harriet Smith Award is a nationally recognised businessman/entrepreneur and was nominated by many people this year due to his tireless work fighting against racism. .

He reaches out to diverse communities that are under represented and has successfully launched a black history month campaign that went viral, passed diversity conference motions and transformed our party’s approach to race equality.

Described by those who nominated him as a man of integrity and candour who works very hard. He is a man with infectious passion, a role model for members of colour, and particularly for future MP’s. One person described how he is ‘helping others flourish and find their path in the party as a black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic person’.

Our winner is the Chair of the Lib Dem Campaign for Race Equality. So Conference please, welcome to the stage Roderick Lynch.

The President’s Award went to someone who has arguably done more than anyone else to establish us as the party of LGBT rights.

Here is how Sal introduced him:

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