Blog: The Windrush generation served us all and made our country a better place
This year our country celebrates two 70th anniversaries – the creation of the NHS and the arrival of SS Windrush at Tilbury Port. The two are intertwined and inseparable, with so many of the Windrush generation helping to build the health service that we all rely on.
I am proud that Unison backed the Windrush campaign when many, including the Prime Minister, seemed unaware of the lives blighted and families placed under intolerable pressure.
The Windrush generation served us all and made our country a better place. Many of them were members of Unison – working for the benefit of all of us in our town halls, schools, hospitals and countless other public services.
Yet that same generation now face cruel and inhumane treatment at the hands of the government, including in many cases – denial of access to the NHS and other public services they and their families helped to build.
The disgust so many of us felt hearing about the Albert Thompson case – the denial of life-saving treatment to someone who has lived here for 44 years – has only increased as further sickening examples come to light. Deportation and the threat of deportation loom large for too many people who have done nothing but build their lives here. Tens of thousands of Windrush children have been affected and subjected to perverse tests (including being asked for four pieces of documentation for every year of residency) that few of us could ever hope to pass.
As a result, honest, decent citizens are being d...
Source: UNISON Health and safety news - Category: Occupational Health Authors: Dave Prentis Tags: General secretary's blog News immig Windrush Source Type: news
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