Reform UK has set the agenda on two-tier policing, by breaking the wall of silence and demanding that what happened to Henry Nowak never happen again.
The reaction of the mainstream media and political establishment has been to claim that calling attention to this unjust situation is divisive and hurtful, and we should shut up about it.
Reform UK Shadow Home Secretary Zia Yusuf gave a masterful rebuke to this argument on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg yesterday morning.
Kuenssberg repeatedly tried to frame Reform UK’s response to Nowak’s death as political point-scoring, gesturing to the statement from Nowak’s family that urged people not to use the tragedy for political ends. Yusuf - when he was able to actually get a word in - refused to accept this premise, and instead calmly reminded viewers what actually happened.
“The last words Henry Nowak heard on this Earth were his rights being read to him by the police as he was handcuffed, as he bled to death, and his murderer and his family were standing over him”, Yusuf said. This, he argued, was “the result of an accusation of racism that was taken more seriously by Hampshire Police than Henry’s repeated statements that he had been stabbed”.
Compassion for the family cannot mean ignoring a national scandal. And there is nothing respectful about refusing to ask why Nowak was treated the way he was by the police. As Yusuf explained: “The only way that we can ensure that we do not have another situation like the tragedy of Henry's death is through political means.”
That is the point the establishment wants to dodge. Yusuf linked Nowak’s treatment to a policing culture that has abandoned equal treatment. As he put it: “If you tell police officers that there will be ‘zero tolerance for any form of racism… and you must prioritise the concerns of ethnic minorities and do not treat everybody the same and do not be colourblind…’ then the logical conclusion is what you saw in the bodycam.” At the end of the day, “there’s nothing more divisive… than two-tier policing.”
Yusuf could not be more right. Reform UK and Nigel Farage have not been “exploiting” or “politicising” a tragedy - we are demanding the political action necessary to ensure that it will never happen again.
Henry Nowak deserved equal treatment under the law. So does every other British citizen. That cannot happen if the political class continues to turn a blind eye.
The reaction of the mainstream media and political establishment has been to claim that calling attention to this unjust situation is divisive and hurtful, and we should shut up about it.
Reform UK Shadow Home Secretary Zia Yusuf gave a masterful rebuke to this argument on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg yesterday morning.
Kuenssberg repeatedly tried to frame Reform UK’s response to Nowak’s death as political point-scoring, gesturing to the statement from Nowak’s family that urged people not to use the tragedy for political ends. Yusuf - when he was able to actually get a word in - refused to accept this premise, and instead calmly reminded viewers what actually happened.
“The last words Henry Nowak heard on this Earth were his rights being read to him by the police as he was handcuffed, as he bled to death, and his murderer and his family were standing over him”, Yusuf said. This, he argued, was “the result of an accusation of racism that was taken more seriously by Hampshire Police than Henry’s repeated statements that he had been stabbed”.
Compassion for the family cannot mean ignoring a national scandal. And there is nothing respectful about refusing to ask why Nowak was treated the way he was by the police. As Yusuf explained: “The only way that we can ensure that we do not have another situation like the tragedy of Henry's death is through political means.”
That is the point the establishment wants to dodge. Yusuf linked Nowak’s treatment to a policing culture that has abandoned equal treatment. As he put it: “If you tell police officers that there will be ‘zero tolerance for any form of racism… and you must prioritise the concerns of ethnic minorities and do not treat everybody the same and do not be colourblind…’ then the logical conclusion is what you saw in the bodycam.” At the end of the day, “there’s nothing more divisive… than two-tier policing.”
Yusuf could not be more right. Reform UK and Nigel Farage have not been “exploiting” or “politicising” a tragedy - we are demanding the political action necessary to ensure that it will never happen again.
Henry Nowak deserved equal treatment under the law. So does every other British citizen. That cannot happen if the political class continues to turn a blind eye.
