BMHUK Magazine | October/November 2011
www.blackmentalhealth.org.uk
Church
Deaths in Custody Church leaders speak out
The high profile deaths in cases of Kingsley Burrell-Brown and Sean Rigg have meant that deaths in custody is very much a live issue for the UK’s African Caribbean communities and has seen church leaders become more vocal on this issue. BMH UK’s The Solution spoke to three key leaders with a track record of publicly advocating for those in the community who use mental health services.
‘There is deep concern of the legacy that deaths in custody has on the community: Ibrahim Sey; Mikey Powell and Kingsley Burrell-Brown left behind very young families when they lost their lives in police custody. Our hearts really go out to the families, especially Kingsley Burrell-Brown’s young children who will grow up fatherless because of the needless action of the state, which must be abhorred.
The essence of what we in society are trying to build is an understanding for the need for families who will bring up children so that they get the best out of the world; it takes the input from both mother and father in order to achieve this. With these families this has been taken away.
There cannot be loss of life without accountability, this must change, we cannot stand idly by and see injustice prevail. I think that the government need to take these cases seriously, that is why they are there, to see injustice reversed and ensure truth and justice prevail.
Church leaders by virtue of our positions must speak out otherwise the situation will get worse and not just black church leaders but also church leaders from the white community need to raise their voice and be heard. We acknowledge the need to transform structures but there has been so much rhetoric, we need more action,’ Archdeacon Daniel Kajumba, chair of the Church of England’s Committee for Minority Ethnic Concerns (CMEAC)
‘We have been down this road too many times before and we are not making any headway, it is high time that the government do something to remedy this ghastly issue of death of people detained in custody. This is a matter that needs to be dealt with urgently, it has been with us for far too long and it will continue if nothing is done to address this matter. The first time someone is charged and convicted there will be a change as it will send out a message that something that this is not acceptable.
Something is going on in the system and it is very suspicious that no one is ever borough to book for these cases. We are really calling on the government to intervene now. You can’t have the same agencies investigating their own practices and systems, especially if there is a vested interest in covering things up,’ Bishop Llewellyn Grayham, Church of God of Prophesy.
‘These recent deaths that we have seen are a wake up call to the community and government who really need to look at this issue seriously now. We cannot allow what we have seen in 2011 to continue. The families are traumatised by this treatment and this has a serious impact on the wider community as well, we have all been affected by this. Service users lives are not disposable commodities, their families will not forget them, we in the community will not forget them. But what we as a society must do is put a stop to all the preventable deaths we have seen and ensure that there is transparency and full accountability in every case where such tragedies have occurred. Pastor Desmond Hall, chair of Christians Together in Brent.
‘And what does the Lord require of you? But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8 (NKJV)
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