Earlier this week, countless people from across the country were left aghast when a blue plaque to commemorate David Oluwale was ripped from it’s city centre location in Leeds just hours after being unveiled in what police have deemed a hate crime.
Yet in a heartwarming twist today, members from the local community managed to successfully crowdfund a replacement for the plaque in a matter of hours to make sure David would never be forgotten.
At the time of writing, a just giving page launched by Leeds Civic Trust had already surpassed its initial £1,000 target, meaning that a replacement plaque can now be bought and installed.
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The original commemorative plaque had been unveiled by Leeds Civic Trust on Monday in memory of David Oluwale, who first moved to Leeds from Nigeria in 1949 in the hopes of pursuing a better life. Sadly while here, he was hounded to his death near Leeds Bridge by two police officers, who targeted him for his race, mental health and homelessness.
The pair ultimately become the first British police officers prosecuted for their involvement in the death of a Black person.
Rather than let his life and legacy be forgotten, the plaque was chosen to honour David and unveiled at 5pm on Monday. However within mere hours, it had been pried from the wall with a crowbar, with West Yorkshire Police fearing it may have been tossed into the nearby river.
So far a search to recover the plaque have been unsuccessful, with one pair of well intentioned magnet fishers joining the search on Tuesday even managing to uncover a grenade in the process. This was then disposed of safely by the relevant authorities.
“Leeds is better than this, and we are a city united,” says the Leeds Civic Trust as part of the crowd funder’s call to action. “This cowardly act will not stop us commemorating David's life and legacy.”
Fully supported by Leeds City Council, the charity is keen to replace the plaque and to improve security in the area. The idea behind crowd funding the finance, was to make it a plaque of the people - by the people, and one that supports DOMA (David Oluwale Memorial Association) in their vital work to truly show that racism is not tolerated within Leeds.
Any funds received beyond the original goal, would also be used to highlight DOMA's work to further David's legacy - highlighting issues of race, homelessness, mental ill-health and migration.
To find out more about David and how vital it is to commemorate his legacy, click here.
To donate to the just giving campaign, click here.
