Several weeks ago we joined the campaign demanding justice for Raven Morrello, the deliveroo cyclist who was attacked by police in Manchester.
We’re delighted that all the charged against Raven have been dropped. Here is a message from the organiser of the campaign:
Raven won! All charges dropped! On behalf of Raven I would like to thank everyone who signed this petition, sent messages of support and generally raised awareness of his plight. It should never have come to this in the first place, and I am sure you will all join me in wishing the very best for Raven after his ordeal, and all continue to support Raven while he recovers from his ordeal, and moves on to a happy, rewarding and fulfilling life.
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Our original article on the case is here:
In August a teenage Deliveroo cyclist, Raven Morrello, was dragged off his bike, roughed-up and thrown in the back of a van by police in Manchester. He was riding his bicycle along a street when a police horse (why do the police have horses anyway??) got ‘spooked’ by the bike. Apparently that was enough of a reason for the police to assault and arrest a 19 year old.
We know that the police can be brutal, that’s why the Black Lives Matter movement is gathering pace in Britain. You can see just how brutal they are by what happened to Raven. The Manchester Evening News website has a video clipof the victim screaming in pain on the ground while the police are pinning him down.
Deliveroo workers are getting shafted from every direction right now. The company is trying to cut their wages by putting them on piecework instead of hourly pay. This provoked a strike in mid-August.
Bosses are attacking them from one side, police from the other. This attack on Raven is the perfect example of how we’re all being treated by the capitalist system. Standing up for him is standing up for ourselves.
Raven is being taken to court in September for cycling without due care and attention and swearing at a police officer. A criminal conviction, for having done nothing wrong, could wreck the life chances of this teenager who’s struggling to earn a bit of money in a badly paid job as it is.
Someone has already launched a campaign and a petition (find it on Facebook) which is getting hundreds of people signing it. We should all support this and get stuck in to fight against this injustice.
