Black Lives Matter protest planned in Shoreham

The peaceful, socially distanced protest will take place at 2pm at Coronation Green in Shoreham tomorrow (Saturday, July 4).

A spokesman said: “Standing together against racism we will raise our voices in solidarity, and demand just and equal treatment of people of colour, not only in Shoreham-By-Sea but throughout the UK and across the world.

“It is long past time to act. Please stand with us.”

The organisers have released an open letter addressed to ‘all Shoreham-by-Sea residents, local councillors, politicians and MP Tim Loughton’ to join the demonstration in support of Black Lives Matter.

In the letter, they say that many forms of discrimination against Black people occur ‘right here in Sussex’, highlighting that a black men are more than 10 times more likely to be stopped and searched than men from other ethnic groups in the county.

The letter also states that black and Asian communities are disproportionately affected by Covid-19, largely as a result of pre-existing economic disparities.

A number of Black Lives Matter protests have taken part in Sussex following the death of George Floyd in the USA in late May.

These have included demonstrations in Worthing and in Steyning.

In Brighton, 10,000 people took to the streets for a Black Lives Matter protest in June.

The open letter from the organisers of the Shoreham event is published in full below:

“This is an open invitation to all Shoreham-by-Sea residents, local councillors, politicians and MP Tim Loughton, to join us as we come together in a demonstration of support for Black Lives Matter, this Saturday 4th July.

“The murder of George Floyd, a black American citizen killed during his arrest in Minneapolis on May 25th 2020, has changed the world forever.

“The tragedy sparked BLM protests across America, the UK a