Member

I stand here as a black woman from a working-class background because of the organising, resistance and, yes, protest of those who came before me. Any legislation that seeks to silence dissent or to criminalise those who dare to challenge power must be wrong. If the history of protest has taught us anything, it is that the struggles of today are a mark of progress tomorrow. We must not continue the legacy of the previous Government, which chipped away at civil liberties under the guise of public order. Our job as lawmakers is to protect, not repress, the right to be heard.