THE GLOBAL STRUGGLE
FOR RACIAL JUSTICE

The murder of George Floyd unleashed an enduring wave of justified anger across the USA and around the world. In country after country, people spoke up about their lifetime experiences of struggle and testified to the ongoing and repeatedly traumatising realities of racism. Newly energised responses built on decades of activism. The sheer scale and weight of protests, in countries as diverse as Colombia, Japan and the Netherlands, shifted public discourse away from discussion of racial discrimination as an individual problem and towards a recognition of systemic racism, focusing attention on political, economic and social structures that perpetuate white supremacy and enable police brutality. Movements for Black lives and Black rights won impacts and recognition that change must come, but also encountered political pushback and often repression that brought further state violence. Struggles will continue as campaigns push for real change rather than lip service.