A Black Lives Matter activist in critical condition after being shot in the head in London

Sasha Johnson, 27, a leading Black Lives Matter (BLM) activist in the UK, is in critical condition after being shot in the head in Peckham, south London.. Scotland Yard assures that there is no evidence that it was a premeditated attack, although his co-religionists in the Taking the Initiative Party warn that he had received death threats.

Sasha Johnson was one of the most visible faces of the BLM protests in London in recent months. Known familiarly as “The Oxford Black Panther” (because of his militancy while at university), he became popular for his paramilitary outfit and his black vest. In recent months, he had actively participated in the founding of the Taking the Initiative party, heralded as the first political force for the black community in the British Isles.

“It is with great sadness that we inform that our colleague Sasha Johnson has been shot in the head,” an official statement from the party, distributed on the networks this Monday morning, could be read.. “She is currently hospitalized and in critical condition.. The incident occurred after receiving numerous death threats.”

“Sasha has always been very active fighting injustices against the black community,” the statement added.. “She is the mother of three children and has been a powerful voice for our people as a member of BLM and as part of the TTIP Executive Committee.”

Rivalry between street gangs

Imarn Ayton, a friend of Johnson, confirmed to the BBC that she had undergone emergency surgery for a gunshot wound to the head, that the operation had gone well and that she was with her parents in the hospital bed.. Ayton said the activist had been “at a party or in a meeting” when she was injured, but she did not believe she was the victim of an attack because of her political activism: “As far as I know, the incident may have more to do with rivalry between street gangs than for their activism.

The shot occurred in the front garden of the house where a party was being held on Cosort Road. According to several witnesses, the alleged attacker was driving down the street, possibly on a bicycle.. Neighbors claim to have heard at least two shots around three in the morning.

“It was a shocking incident that left a young woman seriously injured,” Scotland Yard Chief Inspector Jimi Tele said, appealing to witnesses to help clarify the facts.

His colleagues in Taking the Initiative Party praised the work of Sasha Johnson, a graduate of the University of Oxfrod, as co-founder of the political party “dedicated to the resistance against racism”. “Any attempt to attack her or silence her is an attempt to silence all of us,” they added at the time of calling for a vigil Monday night at Kings College Hospital, where the activist underwent surgery.

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