From Windrush to Stephen Lawrence, modern-day Britain is stained with examples of systemic oppression and violence. As George Floyd’s murder has ignited the fires of protest across the pond, it’s time we took a look at our country’s own sins — Belly Mujinga was a worker at Victoria Station for almost a decade and a doting mother to an 11-year-old girl. On 21 March 2020, a man spat at her and a colleague, laughing and boasting of having coronavirus. Just over a fortnight later, Mujinga passed away in a London hospital…

Once idolised as the epitome of “cool”, post-Brexit Britain has lost much of the sparkle that made it so appealing to its continental neighbours — At 11pm tonight, the UK will finally be calling it quits on the EU, after a nearly four-year-long mess of an exit. The process is far from over — indeed, the transition period will last until the end of 2020 — but the country’s departure is now set in stone…

As bisexual men, we face erasure and harmful stereotypes at the hands of a society which refuses to acknowledge our existence — and it’s keeping us in the closet — It’s the 23rd of September, which marks Bisexual Visibility Day, an occasion for all of us identifying with the third letter of the LGBTQ+ alphabet to celebrate our existence. In a world where advancing rights for the queer community are often met with intensifying violence and a reactionary socio-political backlash…

Conservative politicians ought to look at their party’s own horrific record on immigration and xenophobia before taking the moral high ground over their brasher counterparts across the pond — “Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came,” President Donald Trump tweeted from his phone this Sunday, part of a tirade against four Democratic Congresswomen of colour, three of whom are American-born. It’s the kind of comment immigrants and…

It’s time to take a seat and reflect on what it means to be queer — Ever since Pride Month came into existence and began to achieve international recognition, we’ve all heard that same line that gets thrown around year after year whenever rainbow flags start to appear: “if LGBTQ+ people can have pride, why can’t we have straight pride?” While it’s the sort of phrase…

As the FIFA Women’s World Cup unfolds over the coming weeks, it’s vital to remember how decades of misogyny, envy and social stigma destroyed a once-blossoming sport — and how the path to equality in football is far from over — World Cup fever is back. This time, it’s the lesser-known sibling of FIFA’s international men’s football competition, the Women’s World Cup, which has just kicked off in France and will last until 7 July. The American team, the current reigning champions, have entered the tournament vying to keep hold of…

After years of being made to feel voiceless and unwelcome in their own home, the voter suppression of EU citizens in the European elections comes as little surprise — European citizens in the UK have been disenfranchised since the very beginning of the Brexit process. From the days of the Referendum, they’ve been hurled around as part of a political game with a total disregard for their rights, livelihoods and basic sense of humanity, all the while having no…

The cheerfully-optimistic formula of self-motivation manuals and “pop psychology” may have an obvious charm, but in many cases its inadvertent harm outweighs potential benefits — Social media is oversaturated with “motivation porn” — “The Five Easy Steps To Success”, “Do This And You’ll Find Happiness”, “Take Back Control Of Your Life”, “Ten CEOs Reveal Their Top Tips in Climbing The Career Ladder”, “How To Succeed In Your Dreams”, you know the mantra. An endless flurry…

The racist treatment and historical erasure of Titanic’s Chinese survivors should make us reflect on our current treatment of immigrants — It’s been 107 years since RMS Titanic sunk in the Atlantic Ocean, rendering the early hours of 15 April 1912 one of the most fateful of modern history. The ship’s ill-fated maiden journey has grasped the attention of artists, filmmakers, historians and naval enthusiasts throughout the past century, most iconically…