Peaceful Black Lives Matter protest in Thurso
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A silence lasting eight minutes and 46 seconds spoke volumes as supporters of the Black Life Matters (BLM) movement staged a socially distanced demonstration in Thurso.
At least 30 people joined in Sunday's peaceful protest as part of a worldwide response to the death of unarmed black man George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in the US.
The atmosphere was subdued and respectful as demonstrators – wearing face coverings or masks, and holding home-made placards – spread themselves out on the expanse of open ground between Thurso's boating pond and the rear of the Mill Theatre.
At 1pm the organisers asked all attending if they could "take the knee". They did so for the same length of time that Minneapolis policeman Derek Chauvin had his knee on the neck of 46-year-old Mr Floyd.
One of the organisers of the Thurso event, Liam Godwin, explained that more people turned up to show their support than they had expected.
"I think people were really glad it was happening," he said. "It was quite a large area – everybody stayed a good social distance.
"Everyone was wearing a face mask and we brought some extra signs to hand out.
"We just hope to move forward by handing out information and giving people access to literature and history so hopefully we can get more engaged in the future."
Natalie Isaksson, who helped get the event hastily organised via social media, encouraged those present to show their solidarity for BLM and families who have lost loved ones just because of the colour of their skin, by taking the knee.
Speaking later, she said: "It is not just about showing solidarity – we need to do some hard work and shoulder the burden. We took the knee for eight minutes 46 seconds, the time it took for George Floyd to be asphyxiated."
Nigerian-born Uthman Badmus, who attended on Sunday, said: "I've not really experienced much racism here myself. It's more just ignorance and I think it's important to educate and have discussions on the matter like what we're doing here.
"It's not very diverse here and I get questions about my identity all the time, such as 'where are you from?' and 'what are you doing here?' but I'm happy to answer them."
North MP Jamie Stone added his support to Thurso's BLM gathering.
Mr Stone, the Liberal Democrat MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, said: "I am so sorry I could not attend the kneel. I wanted to say thank you for the hard work that went into organising that event, which includes our police for facilitating the organisers.
"BLM is a movement for the UK as well as the USA. As a white man, I know I have a lot of learning to do about my own privilege. The event in Thurso certainly encouraged me to reflect on my own biases."
He added: "Now is the time to educate ourselves and act in solidarity with black people who continue to be affected by structural racism worldwide.
"It is important that I do not drown out the incredibly hard work of black colleagues with my white voice – instead, I want to use my public platforms to promote what they are doing, so please do look at the important work being done by MPs Dawn Butler and Bell Ribeiro-Addy as they call on the UK government to stop selling police equipment like rubber bullets to the US.
"Thank you once again to those in Thurso who put the time into ensuring a safe display of solidarity in the far north."
