Организация Operation Black Vote запускает программу к 30-летию для укрепления многоэтнической демократии в Великобритании

OPERATION BLACK Vote (OBV), the organisation credited with helping transform Black political representation in Britain over the past three decades, is to mark its 30th anniversary with a year-long programme of events aimed at strengthening democratic participation, political accountability and civic leadership. OBV, which was launched on July 16, 1996, announced that its anniversary programme will run from July 2026 to July 2027 and will include national events, public discussions and initiatives examining the future of Britain’s multiracial democracy. Founded to encourage greater political participation among Black and Asian communities, OBV has spent the past three decades campaigning to increase voter registration, improve political representation and promote civic leadership. Over the past 30 years, the organisation has become one of Britain’s best-known Black political advocacy groups. It has worked with governments, local authorities and public bodies to increase the number of Black and Asian elected representatives and public appointees, while encouraging thousands of people to register to vote and engage in public life. Its campaigns have coincided with a significant rise in Black and minority ethnic representation in Parliament, local government and public institutions. The organisation said the anniversary programme is intended not only to reflect on its achievements but also address the challenges facing democracy today. A flagship anniversary event will be held during Black History Month later this year. The programme will also include a series of national roundtables examining key democratic issues, a Martin Luther King Day event in January 2027 and the Audrey Adams Lecture on International Women’s Day, celebrating the contribution of Black women’s leadership. An OBV spokesperson said the programme would bring together political leaders, academics, businesses, community organisations and civil society groups to discuss the future of democratic participation and civic leadership and examine how political representation could translate into greater accountability and measurable improvements for Black and Asian communities. The anniversary comes at a time when debates around immigration, identity and race have become increasingly prominent in British politics. David Weaver, Chair of Operation Black Vote, said the organisation’s work remained as important today as when it was founded. “Thirty years after OBV’s public launch, this anniversary is not simply a moment to look back on all that has been achieved; it is a moment to renew the democratic promise that first brought us into being,” he said. “Over the past three decades, Operation Black Vote has helped transform who is seen, who is heard, who is elected and who is appointed in British public life. Today, that mission is more important than ever. The next chapter must be about building and defending a genuinely multiracial democracy — one rooted in accountability, shared power and equal opportunity. “That has never mattered more than it does today, when too many of our communities feel increasingly excluded, when racism and division are becoming more normalised, and when confidence in our democracy is being tested.” He went on: “Across Britain and beyond, the far right is growing louder. Anti-migrant rhetoric is hardening. The politics of deportation, exclusion and so-called re-emigration are being dragged from the extremist fringe towards mainstream debate. Racist violence is again visible on our streets, whilst many of the gains made over the last half century in race equality, human rights and democratic inclusion are being questioned, diluted or reversed. “That is why OBV’s work is all the more urgent. A multiracial democracy cannot survive on good intentions and warm words. It requires organisation, strategy, political education, civic courage and accountability.”