The dominating headlines these past few weeks have mostly been in regard to the death of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, and the wider British royal family during their period of mourning. However, one particular story did manage to slip through the proverbial net: the killing of Chris Kaba and its surrounding events. Or more specifically, what some campaigners have damningly portrayed as the murder of Kaba by a serving Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officer. [1] [2]
It can certainly be argued that the Chris Kaba case has touched many people around the UK and has caused outrage amongst minorities, many of whom have felt that the police structure in this country is geared towards targeting BAME communities whilst simultaneously protecting royalty and people of Caucasian backgrounds.
The dealing of Kaba’s case is a stark reminder of what many have suggested as elements being out of the institutional classism and racism textbook within the UK. Chris Kaba, a 24-year-old Black man who was due to become a father in late 2022 and a husband in 2023, was killed whilst unarmed and boxed in by armed police units. Despite the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation remaining live after nearly one month, nobody has yet been arrested, including the officer that fired the solitary bullet that fatally struck Kaba while he was at the wheel of a car. The IOPC has drawn strong criticism after stating that its investigation would continue into next year, before any findings are agreed upon. [3]
“Andrew, you’re a sick old man!”
Despite the apparent lack of progress in the IOPC review of Kaba’s death, one may juxtapose this with the colourful Tuesday 13th September development, wherein a man was arrested after heckling Prince Andrew.
While the disgraced friend of deceased American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein walked behind the procession following the Queen’s coffin from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles’ Cathedral, a 22-year-old man boldly cried out to the prince, “Andrew, you’re a sick old man!” Police officers quickly arrested the offender and he was later charged with “in connection with a breach of the peace on the Royal Mile”. [2]
Kaba case background
Nobody is claiming that Chris Kaba was the model citizen or that he was without sin. At the same time, it should be a given that all citizens are treated with equality and justice by the police services and by the associated democratic systems in place. This did not seem to be the case in South London on 5 September.
Chris Kaba was driving through the town of Streatham, when a police ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) camera flagged the car he was driving as being linked to a recent firearms incident. Yes, he was driving a car that tripped the police database, but the IOPC later stated that the car was not registered in Kaba’s name.
The police began pursuing Kaba, and two police vehicles collided into his car, boxing him in at Streatham Hill. A specialist firearms officer then fired a single shot through the windscreen, aimed at the driver’s side. The shot hit Kaba at the back of the head. Police officers delivered emergency first aid whilst awaiting paramedics. An ambulance then took him to hospital, where just two hours later, he was sadly pronounced dead, at 12:16am the next day. [1] [4]
Following Kaba’s death, his family has accused the MPS of racism, and on Saturday 17th September, the family joined hundreds in protest outside the Metropolitan Police headquarters at New Scotland Yard. [4] In a statement, his family said:
“We are devastated; we need answers and we need accountability.
“We are worried that if Chris had not been black, he would have been arrested on Monday evening and not had his life cut short.” [5]
Jefferson Bosela, Kaba’s cousin and a spokesperson for the family, speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, disturbingly said:
“The family found out 11 hours [after he died], so his mum would have woken up and have gone to work not knowing that her son wasn’t alive anymore.” [5]
In addition to the New Scotland Yard demonstration, further protests took place all across the country – in central London, Brighton, Oxford, Southampton, Coventry, Leamington Spa, Manchester, Taunton, Hassockfield, and Cardiff – as part of a ‘national day of action’ which was organised by the Justice for Kaba Campaign. [4]
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said that the IOPC “must go wherever the evidence takes them.” [4] The former Labour MP for Tooting also went further in stating,
“I fully understand the grave concerns and impact of Chris Kaba’s death on black Londoners across our city, and the anger, pain and fear it has caused across our communities – as well as the desire for justice and change.
“The IOPC have confirmed to me that they are fully committed to carrying out a thorough and comprehensive investigation to establish all of the facts – with all key findings made public.” [4]
As has been noted, there have so far been no arrests. The police officer responsible for killing Kaba has been suspended as the IOPC continues their investigation. In some quarters, it has been alleged that colleagues of the suspended firearms officer threatened to hand in their guns and “step down over colleague’s suspension”. [5]
Is Prince Andrew’s life more sacred than that of the late Chris Kaba?
So, here we have what some have termed the ‘murder’ of a Black man who was shot whilst stationary and boxed in, while another young man has been charged with breach of the peace for using his right to freedom of speech to chastise Prince Andrew. Andrew has, of course, been repeatedly sought by the FBI for information on the late Jeffrey Epstein. According to US prosecutors, the deceased financier is believed to have trafficked and/ or abused in excess of 36 victims, all of whom were believed to be young girls. Andrew has specifically been targeted by federal authorities after a now infamous photograph of the prince, Epstein associate and fixer Ghislaine Maxwell, and a girl named Virginia Giuffre emerged from the woodwork in 2011.
The question we now have to ask is, what makes Prince Andrew’s life more valuable than Chris Kaba’s?
Does Prince Andrew’s status as standing eighth in line in the throne, being the son of the late Queen, the brother of the new King, a White man, and a powerful and wealthy man of influence, mean his life is worth more? Does the life of Chris Kaba, a man who had a criminal record and had only just come out of a young offenders’ institution, who was part of a drill gang (a genre of music which has been blamed for instigating turf wars), who was not from a wealthy or powerful family and was not in line to the throne, not matter as much? [6]
It would appear that despite Prince Andrew’s long-standing friendship with the now deceased Jeffrey Epstein, – a man who was in remand while awaiting trial on trafficking charges – his class and privilege present him as seemingly less of a risk, and more worthy of proper protection, than a man killed whilst reportedly on the run from the police. [7]
Source: Islam21c
Notes
[1] theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/16/first-edition-chris-kaba-met-police
[2] news.sky.com/story/man-arrested-after-heckling-prince-andrew-during-royal-procession-12695924
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/sep/16/chris-kaba-killing-iopc-investigation-to-examine-whether-race-was-a-factor
[4] news.sky.com/story/man-dies-after-being-shot-by-armed-police-in-south-london-126910325[4] bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-62940371
[5] standard.co.uk/news/uk/chris-kaba-fatal-shooting-met-police-b1025697.html
[6] uk.news.yahoo.com/chris-kaba-inside-story-shooting-113741935.html
[7] nytimes.com/2021/12/02/nyregion/jeffrey-epstein-charges.html
