Black Britons fear for Diane Abbott after a millionaire’s call for violence

A top Tory donor said the veteran politician, affectionately called ‘Auntie Di’ by her supporters, should be shot.

London, United Kingdom – Natasha Shotunde, a British barrister, was born two years after Diane Abbott was elected as the first Black female member of parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington in 1987.

It is a seat the 70-year-old, affectionally called “Auntie Di” in the Black British community, still holds today.

“Whatever strand of the political spectrum you might be in, for a Black woman, a Black girl growing up, seeing someone in such a prominent space, it’s big,” Shotunde told Al Jazeera. “It shows you that it’s possible – you can be in public life and in public roles.”

This past week has been difficult for Shotunde, and many more Black Britons.

On Monday, the Guardian newspaper reported that the biggest donor to the ruling, right-wing Conservative Party had told colleagues in 2019 that Abbott made him “want to hate all Black women”.