Protesters attempt to hijack Sankofa Day stage
Toyin Agbetu suggests that the attempted hijacking of Sankofa Day by vegan and antifascists activist at Trafalgar Square 2019, achieves nothing but further divide those who should be united in the fight against capitalist exploitation and oppression.
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Were you at Sankofa Day 2019 with your friends or family? How did the incidents make you feel?Click here to speak out and share your perspective on this article.
You must never again violate our time and space to grieve, honour and celebrate those whose revolutionary direct actions in Ayiti in 1804 led to the moral understanding of human rights granting us the freedom to protest across the world today.
Toyin Agbetu, Ligali
*UPDATE* Received - 21 August 2019
\"Hello Toyin,
We deeply regret that our demonstration clashed with Shakofa Day. This was certainly not our intention and was not done purposefully. This was an error of communication and our stewards were ill informed on the day which we apologise for.
Despite this, your space to grieve your ancestors, reconnect to your identity, remember and reclaim history was invaded. We understand that in order to end speciesism and the climate crisis we must heal from and liberate ourselves from all forms of oppression that have arisen through imperialism, colonialism and invasion - the effects of which we still see today. We share a hope to create a world that is kinder to people, animals and the planet.
In terms of the insensitive behaviour that you experienced; as a new and rapidly growing movement we are always working to redefine a culture built on oppression to one that is inclusive and resilient while promoting care and respect. This was a failing on our part due to the fact that we didn’t translate this to our stewards nor did we consider who would be in Trafalgar Square on Saturday.
We would like to extend an invitation to you, if you would like to discuss this issue further, to come into our offices. This may be a way in which to heal and learn from the event and we would like to express our solidarity with you and the wider cause.
Kind regards,
Animal Rebellion \"
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