Rap star Wretch 32 has released shocking footage of police tasering his father at his house causing him to fall down a flight of stairs.
The clip, which was released by the grime artist this evening, shows people in the background screaming as his father, Millard Scott, lays prone on the floor on April 21, this year.
The distressing scenes were captured on police body cam footage as officers push past a woman to enter a house in Tottenham, North London.
As they go inside, a woman says: ‘Don’t touch me, I’m not resisting, social distancing, please don’t touch me.’
Police move through the house saying ‘police officer with taser move move’ and then ‘police officer with taser stay where you are’ before firing.
The rapper said he will appear with his father on the news later to discuss the incident
The police warn they are going to use a taser and then shoot the man, causing him to fall down the stairs
Officers then check on him as he lays prone on the floor. Met Police confirmed that an ambulance was called but Mr Scott required no further treatment
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has demanded an ‘urgent explanation of the distressing incident’ from the Met Police
A man, who Wretch 32 has said is his father, collapses down the stairs and lays limp on the floor. A woman shouts ‘oh my god, oh my god’ as he falls.
The officers then check on the prone man asking ‘are you ok’, as he lays stricken on the floor. The clip then ends.
The grime artist, real name Jermaine Scott Sinclair, from Tottenham, North London, posted the video to his social media accounts this evening.
He said: ‘This is how the police think they can treat a 62 year old black man in Tottenham but this 1 happens to be my dad #Nojusticenopeace’.
The rapper, who has amassed more than a million in record sales, says he will be appeared with his father on ITV News at 10.
Millard Scott said: ‘I’m lucky to be alive. The only people who have invaded our space are the Metropolitan Police. The only people who seem to ignore all the guidelines put out there are the metropolitan police.’
Wretch 32 described how his father and his uncle fought against police brutality in London
Millard Scott, appearing on ITV News tonight, said he was ‘lucky to be alive’ after the incident
Asked if the same thing would happen to him if he was white, he said ‘no way, no how’.
Mr Scott is shown an interview of Met Commissioner Cressida Dick saying there is no discrimination in the force. He responds: ‘It seems to me that in this moment in time are are being singled out and targeted.’
His son Wretch 32, adds: ‘Ive grown up in a household with my dad and my uncle and I’ve watched them fight against police brutality my whole life.
‘I’m 35 now and we are still here again today and I now have to have the same conversations that my dad and my uncle and my grandparents had with me when I was a child. That means there is no progression.
Social media users reacted with fury at the clip, describing the incident as ‘vile’ and that things like this ‘must stop’.
One user said: ‘I’d love to know the context here. They shout at him to ‘stay where you are’ and give him no time to comply, then taser him at the top of the stairs so he has to fall.
‘Looking at him on the stairs his size hardly looks to be a physical threat. This just seems so wrong’
And another said: ‘I am so sorry to see this, solidarity.’
The grime artist (pictured), real name Jermaine Scott Sinclair, from Tottenham, North London, posted the video to his social media accounts this evening
The shocking video comes in the wake of the Black Lives Matters movement sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis.
The death of Mr Floyd – whose funeral was today in Houston, his home town – comes amid demonstrations all over the world against racial injustice and police brutality.
In the UK, there have been multiple marches in cities and town all over the country for the past week, as Black Lives Matters protesters called for the country to face its imperialist past, and tear down statues of people associated with the slave trade.
Winston Churchill’s statue in Parliament Square was covered in graffiti after protests in the capital at the weekend.
And the statue of Edward Colston was thrown in Bristol’s harbour after being dragged on its plinth by activists on Sunday.
Today, more than a thousand protesters blocked an Oxford street in a loud but peaceful anti-racism protest over the statue of an imperialist at a university college.
A campaign to remove the statue of colonialist Cecil Rhodes from the second floor of Oxford University’s Oriel College has gained renewed attention in recent days, with thousands signing new petitions to have the monument taken down.
Demonstrators hold placards as they protest for the removal of a statue of British imperialist Cecil Rhodes on the outside of Oriel College in Oxford, on Tuesday
Tuesday’s demonstration attracted around a thousand people as speakers called for the college to remove the statue from the High Street entrance of Oriel College and put it in context, as well as protesting against racism across society.
Ndjodi Ndeunyema, a law student and one of the organisers of Tuesday’s demonstration, said: ‘We are here to shame the college that seeks to venerate and glorify someone who is not worthy of glorification or veneration.
‘We demand an official and public acknowledgement of the colonial violence on which Oriel is built.
‘We demand the immediate removal of the statue of Cecil Rhodes.’
The Oxford protest comes after several Black Lives Matter protests nationwide, including a demonstration on Saturday where a statue of 17th century slave trader Edward Colston was pulled down and thrown into Bristol Harbour.
At one moment during Tuesday’s peaceful protest, attendees spent eight minutes and 46 seconds silently sitting on the floor to mark Mr Floyd’s death.
In 2016, Oriel College decided to keep the statue despite widespread student demands to remove it.
Demonstrators gather outside University of Oxford’s Oriel College during a protest called by the Rhodes Must Fall campaign on Tuesday
University of Oxford associate professor of African politics Simukai Chigudu said: ‘This campaign has been important for a very long time, one of the challenges of being black in this country or belonging to a minority group is that you feel that your presence is unwelcome, and that’s true of Oxford University as well.
‘The institution is structured according to a legacy and a culture that is very white and very elitist.’
Dr Chigudu added that the campaign to remove Rhodes’ statue could help highlight a deeper set of structural issues in society.
Several vans worth of police officers were in the area of the demonstration.
After the protest ended and numbers reduced, an officer in a blue liaison uniform knelt in the middle of the crowd and was met with cheers.
Many of the protesters wore masks or gloves at the demonstration while organisers also handed out masks and drew chalk crosses on the floor to encourage distancing – though protesters and journalists were in close proximity by the doors of the college.
Ahead of the protest, the leader of Oxford City Council Susan Brown invited the college to apply for planning permission to have the statue removed – despite its Grade II listed status.
She suggested the statue should be placed in the Ashmolean or the Museum of Oxford.
Labour councillor Dr Hosnieh Djafari-Marbini addressed the crowd and said the statue commemorated white supremacy.
She said: ‘I’m going to give the college a message from Oxford City Council – please do apply for planning permission to have the statue removed.’
Oriel College declined to comment on the letter when approached by PA, and instead pointed to a statement it made earlier in the day.
In the statement, the college said it supported the right to peaceful protest, adding: ‘We will continue to examine our practices and strive to improve them to ensure that Oriel is open to students and staff of all backgrounds, and we are determined to build a more equal and inclusive community and society.’
The Metropolitan Police confirmed they attended the address ‘to carry out arrest enquiries as part of a long running operation to tackle drugs supply linked to serious violence in the Borough of Haringey.’
A spokesman said: ‘A 22-year-old man located inside the address was arrested and later charged with encouraging another to commit an offence under the Serious Crime Act 2007.
‘A 52-year-old woman was also arrested at the scene on suspicion of obstructing/resisting a police constable in the execution of duties but was de-arrested at the scene.
‘She was subsequently charged with the offence after being interviewed by police under caution at a later date.
‘As officers entered the premises, a man came downstairs and started moving towards an officer suddenly.
‘He was ordered to remain where he was but continued towards officers who, after several warnings, deployed a Taser.’
The spokesman said the man was not arrested and the London Ambulance Service was called to the scene, but the man required no further treatment.
A spokesman added: ‘The incident, including body worn footage, has been reviewed by the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards and no indication of misconduct has been identified.’
Commander of the North Area Command Unit, Treena Fleming said: ‘I can understand why any use of Taser can look alarming – that is why it receives heavy scrutiny – which we welcome.
‘Met officers are highly trained to engage, explain and try to resolve situations, using force only when absolutely necessary. We examine our processes regularly to ensure Taser is being used in an appropriate manner.
‘This incident has been thoroughly reviewed by our professional standards department and no misconduct has been identified. I continue to talk to the family about their concerns.’