On Monday June 6th, Hostile was watched by MPs, policy influencers and organisations at Parliament.
The screening marks the launch of our impact campaign led by Galeforce Films to enact real change and improve the lives of people affected by issues discussed in the film.
Bringing together communities, educators and legal experts, the Impact campaign wants to raise awareness of and push for reform to the No Recourse to Public Funds policy.
The event was sponsored by Kate Osamor, Labour MP for Edmonton, and hosted by Jasmine Dotiwala, multimedia broadcaster and journalist. Following the screening, Jasmine hosted a panel with Hostile’s writer and director Sonita Gale, and some of the film’s participants including Anthony Bryan and Natalie Barnes, who are Windrush campaigners, and Stephen Timms, MP.
As we called for our attendees to challenge the hostile environment a decade on from its creation, we reflected on the impact of a decade of the hostile environment and discussed the impact of the cost of living crisis on migrants.
The screening took place at the same time as the no confidence vote in Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The buzz around Parliament was electric and it was a timely reminder of the way the Government has continued to neglect the needs of migrants in the UK.
Jeremy Corbyn MP powerfully stated that “people are not born racist” and this was an important takeaway in the face of continued delays in Windrush compensation and scandals of institutional racism.
In the Q&A following the screening, a discussion was opened by Councillor Michelle Simmons-Safo on what can be done to engage people in politics given her experience recently canvassing for votes on the doorsteps of Tottenham. This opened the conversation to contributions from Stephen Timms MP, Sonita Gale, Hostile’s director, and representatives from Project 17, an organisation working with people subjected to NRPF, on the importance of education in both schools and community settings.
Check in with our social media channels for updates and email us if you are interested in attending info@galeforcefims.co.uk.
You can read more about the event on our Impact Screenings page.
And for tickets to upcoming screenings, visit this page.