Learning English

Black Lives Matter: Racism at London protest

The death of George Floyd in the United States has led to many anti-racism demonstrations around the world. At one of them in the UK last weekend in support of Black Lives Matter, right-wing protesters were arrested after violent behaviour towards the police and others. Neil and Catherine look at the vocabulary in the news around this story.

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The story

The prime minister has condemned what he called ‘racist thuggery’ after clashes between protesters and police in central London. Crowds of mainly white men gathered around the Sir Winston Churchill statue in Parliament Square saying they wanted to protect it from vandalism by anti-racism demonstrators.

Key words and phrases

thuggery
violent behaviour

• Thuggery can make a peaceful protest turn violent.
• There’s a long history of thuggery at football competitions.

clash
fight

• Rival gangs clashed in the street.
• Politicians clashing in parliament is part of the democratic process.

headed off
prevented from happening

• With good planning, the worst effects of natural disasters can be headed off.
• He headed off a tantrum by buying his son an ice cream.

To do

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