There was a Black Lives Matter vigil in the square yesterday

Dozens of students gathered in support of the movement


To begin this year’s Black History Month, UEA Womanist Society and fellow students came together for a vigil to commemorate those who have fallen at the hands of police brutality in the UK.

The vigil, while acting as an opportunity to spread awareness for the Black Lives Matter movement across campus, focused on the victims, rather than statistics or political discourse.

Candles and tea lights were passed around the ever growing group as those gathered paid their respects.

The Tab spoke to some of the organisers in order to gage how important this vigil is, not just for the Black Lives Matter movement, but as an introduction to Black History Month.

Julian Canlas, one of the organisers saw the vigil as essential to “kick-starting the Black History Month in UEA”.

He continued: “There has been so much media silence on this issue and we think it’s necessary to start this month with the focus on this [issue at hand].”

With the UEA SU coming out publicly in support for the BLM movement, the vigil itself was a visual signifier of the shifting importance of such issues in university politics and on this campus in particular.

Current Co-President of the UEA Womanist Society, Mimi, believes events like this raise much needed awareness.  She told The Tab Norwich: “We want to raise awareness not just for what is happening abroad or in the UK, but for what is happening in our own communities.

“We deserve a space to protest.”

With the recent backlash to BLM protests across Great Britain, many people ask if the Black Lives Matter movement is relevant in the UK. But the UEA students answer, is a resounding yes.