Archive of Luke de Noronha

On February 11, a mass deportation flight to Jamaica departed from Doncaster Airport, UK, carrying seventeen people. At the same time the government announced an emergency law to imprison people convicted of “terror offences” for longer, and the Metropolitan police deployed facial recognition technology on the streets of London. In this article, Gracie Mae Bradley and Luke de Noronha analyse the authoritarian context of the new series of charter flights for so-called ‘foreign criminals’, and how to resist it.

The Stansted 15, who peacefully blocked a mass deportation flight in March 2017, were convicted on Monday under the Aviation and Maritime Security Act. They face up to life in prison and await sentencing in February. Luke de Noronha and Tanzil Chowdhury reflect on their conviction and its profound significance for all of us. 

In addition to the newfound sympathy for the Windrush generation, we should remember that ‘illegal immigrants’ are our kin, especially if we are to challenge the racism at the heart of the ‘hostile environment’.