12/04/05Mal Hussain and Linda Livingstone bought the Ryelands mini market
in 1991. Within days of starting to run their business, they were threatened
and racially abused. Mal was the only black person on the estate.
In the last 14 years, Mal recorded over 4,000 separate incidents of racism,
which included a firebomb on the shop and being shot at with live bullets.
The National Assembly Against Racism began supporting Mal and Linda’s
campaign to stop the harassment, bringing the national spotlight on the case
in 1996, establishing Friends of Mal Hussain campaign.
Of the thousands of incidents reported to the police, only a fraction were
taken to court, with a over a hundred convictions, despite the severity and
consistency of the racist attacks faced by Mal and Linda. In 2002, one of
the worst perpetrators Craig Wareing was forbidden from entering Lancaster
for life in a significant victory for Mal and Linda, but many more escaped
prosecution.
Lee Jasper, Secretary of the National Assembly Against Racism
said: “Mal and Linda did not want to leave the Ryelands estate after
having built such a successful business. Instead, Mal meticulously kept records
of an appalling number of incidents, some so severe that they could have cost
Mal’s life. Today, the news of Mal and Linda’s departure from
the estate comes as an indictment on the record of the Lancashire Constabulary
and the City Council’s abject failure to enforce existing legislation,
which provides them the powers to prosecute racists. From day one until his
last day on the estate, Mal experienced racism.
“In the last year, Mal has been looking for ways of leaving Ryelands,
having come to the end of his tether with the constant nature of the harassment
he has been experiencing. However, despite reaching a settlement the details
of which cannot be disclosed, Mal has had to sell the minimarket at cut down
price and leave before the end of April or face court action. This has been
the most unfair part of the whole experience for Mal, having been once victimised
by the racists and then by the institutions. It is a credit to Mal and Linda
for their tenacity and courage for standing firm in the face of extreme racism
and violence. This case represents one of the most serious and sustained acts
of racist violence in recent history. On behalf of the National Assembly Against
Racism, I wish Mal and Linda all the best and hope that they can now rebuild
their lives free from racism.”
Mal Hussain said: “It has been 14 years of hell for
both Linda and I. I have always stated that I would not be driven away from
my successful business, built through sheer determination and despite all
the attempts by racists to undermine it and to force us to leave Ryelands.
I feel betrayed and failed by the institutions, who are supposed to protect
those who suffer in the hands of racists. I relentlessly campaigned against
the attacks I have experienced because racists cannot be allowed to get away
with their acts of violence and harassment. This is a sad day for us, because
we feel we have been pushed into a corner and options removed from us.”
Click HERE
for the Guardian article.
Click HERE
for the BBC News article.