Humza Yousaf and Anas Sarwar address anti-racism rally
The First Minister was joined by the leader of Scottish Labour in Glasgow
The First Minister and the leader of the Scottish Labour Party have joined trade union groups taking part in an anti-racism march in Glasgow.
Humza Yousaf and Anas Sarwar took part in the Scottish Trade Union Congress’s (STUC) annual St Andrew’s Day protest. Which saw marchers from all over Scotland gather at Glasgow Green.
The crowd marched from the Green up to Strathclyde University, joined by protesters from a number of anti-racism groups chanting “justice for Sheku Bayoh” and “Free Palestine”.
The theme of this year’s rally is “From Erskine to Elgin: The far right is not welcome”.
After arriving at Strathclyde, Mr Yousaf spoke of his own family’s experience of being racially abused post 9/11, and denounced the “horrific examples of the mobilisation of the far right”.
"For the first time in my life, as a teenager, I felt like Scotland, maybe, wasn't my home"
He said: “I remember, and I suspect that Anas will remember, and anybody who is Muslim, that post-9/11 life felt really difficult.
"If you had a beard, or like my sisters and my mother you wore a hijab, my sister had stones thrown at her coming off the train.
"We were called terrorists, we were asked if we were related to Bin Laden, we were part of the Taliban.
"All of that Islamophobia that we faced, I can say that post-9/11 the days and weeks, even the months after 9/11, for the first time in my life, as a teenager, I felt like Scotland, maybe, wasn't my home."
The First Minister then took the time to express his solidarity with the family of Sheku Bayoh, telling them he hopes they get the answers they deserve, before going on to reiterate his support for a cease fire in Gaza.
He said: “Whichever community needs us, wherever they are in Scotland, or abroad, we stand shoulder to shoulder with them.
"I will always, it's my commitment, my pledge to you, my promise to you, I will always raise my voice for those who are facing hatred, who need someone to amplify their voice, whether it's at home, or whether it's abroad."
The rally then heard from Mr Sarwar who echoed the First Minister’s sentiments.
He highlighted the uncertainty many people of minority ethnicities feel when applying for workplace promotions, with many feeling discouraged due to the colour of their skin, or their name, stating it is “sadly an everyday occurrence” in the country and across the world.
On a personal note, Mr Sarwar spoke of his son Adam, who at the age of 12 was bullied by a group of boys due to his race.
"I went up to my own bed that night and I wept"
He said Adam was playing football with the group of boys, who were around his age, who refused to pass to him, stating this was due to him being "the only Paki in the team".
"That was the day he discovered racism," Mr Sarwar said.
"Honestly, I went up to my own bed that night and I wept, and I thought to myself, when I was 12 I discovered racism.
"My son is 12 and he's discovered racism. When his son is 12, if he tells Adam that same story, my generation, our generation, will have failed.
"We have got to resolve not to let that happen."
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