'The police will kill me before corona kills me': Two young women organisers of the London Black Lives Matter protest make incredible claim that they 'risk their lives on a daily basis' living in 'so racist' UK

  • EXCLUSIVE: 18-year-old Aima and Tash, 21, are revealed as organising the London protests over the killing of George Floyd 
  • They have posted a series of hard hitting social media messages slamming Britain for being a 'racist country' 
  • Aima defended the decision to defy ban on mass gatherings, saying police brutality will kill black people before coronavirus does  
  • Chants of, 'I can't breathe,' rebounded across the Thames, the words George Floyd was heard gasping before his death as a white police officer knelt on his neck in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a week ago
  • Thousands had earlier gathered at Trafalgar Square before making their way to the gates of Downing Street and then south of the river towards the US Embassy 
  • They have defied the ban on mass gatherings due to coronavirus to show their solidarity with US citizens 
  • Dozens of US cities have been set ablaze over the last week amid deadly clashes with police officers over the killing of Floyd, whose death is seen as a symbol of systemic police brutality against African-Americans 
  • Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19

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Two young women have been revealed as organising the London protests over the killing of George Floyd which sparked violence on the capital's streets.

Thousands of Black Lives Matter protestors defied a ban on mass gatherings to rally at Trafalgar Square on Sunday before making their way to the gates of Downing Street and then south of the river towards the US Embassy.

Today 18-year-old Aima and Tash, 21, were named as posting a series of hard hitting social media messages slamming Britain for being a 'racist country' and claiming that 'police brutality' will kill black people before coronavirus does.

But their claims are not grounded in evidence, as analysis by the charity Inquest reveals there has been 99 BAME deaths in Metropolitan Police custody, or following officer contact such as shootings in the last 30 years.

In contrast, Covid-19 has killed 5,956 people in London since the start of the pandemic and data in late April found that BAME victims accounted for 16 per cent of overall deaths - which extrapolated to today's total would be around 953. 

Protest organiser Aima
Protest organiser Tash

Two 18-year-olds Aima (left) and Tash (right) have been revealed as organising the London protests over the killing of George Floyd which sparked violence on the capital's streets. They've posted a series of hard hitting social media messages slamming Britain for being a 'racist country' and claiming that 'police brutality' will kill black people before coronavirus does

TRAFALGAR SQUARE, LONDON, ENGLAND: Hundreds of demonstrators were packed into Trafalgar Square on Sunday, chanting 'I can't breathe,' the words Floyd was heard gasping as a white police officer knelt on his neck in Minneapolis

TRAFALGAR SQUARE, LONDON, ENGLAND: Hundreds of demonstrators were packed into Trafalgar Square on Sunday, chanting 'I can't breathe,' the words Floyd was heard gasping as a white police officer knelt on his neck in Minneapolis

On her website, Aima, who is believed to have spent part of her childhood growing up in the US, describes herself as 'teenage creative,' adding: 'I am a 18-year-old girl who lives just outside of London. I have a passion for photography and content creating as a whole.'

In a Twitter video, posted after Sunday's demonstration, she declared: 'You guys are saying that the corona pandemic will kill us, but police brutality will kill us first. I'm already risking my life on a daily basis. Corona's not going to kill me before the police kill me.'

In a video of her addressing the crowd at Sunday's demonstration, which was captioned 'A young black queen' Aima declares: 'The reason that I'm out here is that I'm scared for all my brothers and sisters. I want us all to spread the message that our lives bloody matter, black lives matter. And I'm tired of all the abuse and harassment and brutality from the police.'

Tash, a student from London, told MailOnline that neither her nor Aima are willing to divulge any personal details about themselves.

In response to a Twitter post criticising protestors for not socially distancing, she said: 'The UK is so racist it's blaming activism on something the government has failed to protect us from since March.'

In another post, she wrote: 'When I was growing up, it was all my wh*te friends shoplifting and that… we learned violence from you.'

The teenagers have been described as 'the amazing sisters of this protest' who have been using social media to help build a supporter base across the UK.

The two young women have organised another demonstration outside the US embassy for this weekend while others they are involved in are taking place in other British cities this week.

One supporter tweeted to Tash: 'I am so f***ing proud of you, you are leading a revolution. A proud black young woman is leading the f***ing UK protests, you are creating history and I will be here to support you in any way I can.' 

People carrying banners gather during a protest over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after being pinned down by a white police officer in USA

People carrying banners gather during a protest over the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died after being pinned down by a white police officer in USA

BAME deaths in Metropolitan Police custody or shootings 

BAME deaths in Metropolitan Police custody or following contact with the police are tracked by the charity, Inquest. 

The charity says: 'Fourteen per cent of deaths in police custody or otherwise following contact with the police since 1990 were BAME. This is proportionate to the population as at the 2011 census.

'However, BAME people die disproportionately as a result of use of force or restraint by the police, raising serious questions of institutional racism as a contributory factor in their deaths.'

Below are the number of deaths each year since 2010: 

2020:  1 shooting 

2019: 1 shooting, 1 in custody

2018: 2 in custody

2017: 2 in custody, 4 shootings

2016: 1 in custody

2015: 2 in custody, 1 shooting

2014: 1 in custody, 1 shooting

2013: 0 deaths

2012: 1 in custody

2011: 2 in custody, 1 shooting

2010: 1 in custody 

Total:  22

Source: Inquest 

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Sunday's demonstration was largely peaceful but led to scuffles between police and protestors. One group of officers were seen tackling protesters on Kensington High Street, with reports some activists threw traffic cones at police. 

Dozens of American cities have been set ablaze over the last week amid deadly clashes with police officers over the killing of Floyd, whose death is seen as a symbol of systemic police brutality against African-Americans.

A source close to protests that are being organised in Britain said: 'Aima and Tash have done an incredible job. They are only young, but they've kicked off this whole movement and really tapped into people's anger.

'They've made it clear that they just want peaceful protest and that everybody needs to maintain social distance. That's not quite happened because people get very passionate at these demonstrations, but you can't blame the two of them for that. They are both amazing women.'

Following Sunday's protest, Aima was also interviewed by the BBC World Service claiming that she never expected so many people to attend.

'It was quite incredible the amount of people that came. There were all kinds of people there and that shows me that people in the UK are united,' she said.

She also accused the Metropolitan Police of being 'institutionally racist' claiming that she had decided to organise the protest because she wanted to 'take a stand.'

Aima claimed that British police 'looked at her differently' compared to her white friends and that it 'dehumanised' many young black men in particular.

Referring to the killing of George Floyd she said: 'I think it really made me take a look at the police system all around the world. I have always been focusing on institutional racism in America but it really made me look in the UK. I have realised that there's so much institutional racism in the UK police.'

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