Here are details of the latest events we have taken part in.
Quakers from Chesterfield supported the protest about the Government’s proposal to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda. Several speakers expressed their anger at the idea that people escaping war and persecution would be forced onto planes, with a one-way ticket to a country with a poor record in protecting human rights. The plan has been labelled ‘inhumane’, expensive and will be open to challenge in the courts. Campaigners have pledged to oppose the plan.
Several Quakers from Chesterfield Meeting joined the United Nations Anti-Racism March in London on 19th March 2022. Ten thousand people marched from the BBC Broadcasting House through Whitehall to Parliament Square where speeches were made. The Nationality and Borders Bill was heavily criticised and demands for it to be scrapped were supported. The Bill would criminalise refugees and those who show the humanity to help them, and instead the Government should build a safe passage and security for those fleeing conflict around the world.
On Saturday 4th September several Quakers from Chesterfield Local Meeting joined the COP26 relay organised by The Young Christian Climate Network. The YCCN relay started at the G7 in Cornwall in June and will end in Glasgow at the end of October ready for the UN Climate Change Conference of Parties in November. They are calling on the Government for Climate Justice. We walked a short way with them from Hasland to Rykneld Square in Chesterfield where a warm welcome was given including speeches in support of their cause, from Toby Perkins MP and the Mayor and Consort. There was also a crowd singalong with words reflecting our planet in need. Do keep 6th November free when there will be a day of climate action in Chesterfield.
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