BURNHAM MAINTAINS SILENCE

For the second time in less than a week there has been a major violation of the local lockdown in Manchester and for the second time the Mayor of Greater Manchester has said nothing.  On Wednesday night it was the turn of Afghans to take over Wilmslow Road in Rusholme - the same location of the Pakistan Independence Day celebrations five days earlier.  The repeat performance was on a much smaller scale, but once again there was little respect shown for the lockdown rules and police were forced to close off the road while they tried to disperse the large gathering.  The occasion was the 101st anniversary of Afghan independence from British rule.

Silence from politicians, mainstream media, and also double standards from Greater Manchester Police have added to growing frustration among some Mancunians.  Two days later the force issued a series of tweets announcing they had broken up house parties across the region and issued homeowners with fixed penalty notices.  Homes targeted included a private gathering of seven people in Droylsden and a children's birthday party in Swinton attended by three families.  Many of those commenting on the tweets pointed out that when hundreds of people were gathering on Wilmslow Road there was not a single arrest or fixed penalty issued.  There was, conveniently, no tweet either.

Considering that we have been constantly bombarded with mainstream media propaganda in recent months about 'institutional racism', if anything the police in Greater Manchester seem to be favouring BAME communities rather than 'oppressing' them.  Unfortunately, coronavirus is less partisan.