Rishi Sunak is the UK’s first prime minister of colour, but equality fight not over
- Rishi Sunak is Britain’s third prime minister this year and the first person of colour to hold the top job
- But Sunak isn’t typical of the millions of people from ethnic backgrounds in Britain who still face barriers
Harmeet Singh Gill was excited to hear that Rishi Sunak would become Britain’s first prime minister of colour – news that came as he celebrated the Diwali festival in a London neighbourhood sometimes called Little India.
“It’s almost a watershed moment,” the 31-year-old said as he volunteered at the cavernous dome-topped house of worship that serves the Sikh community in west London’s Southall neighbourhood. “It’s just a sign of 21st-century Britain, where it doesn’t matter what background you’re from now, that you can rise up the ranks to the positions of power.”
But, for many people of colour in the UK, it’s not so simple. Sunak, 42, will be the first Hindu and the first person of South Asian descent to lead the country, which has a long history of colonialism and has often struggled to welcome immigrants from its former colonies – and continues to grapple with racism and wealth inequality.
King Charles asked Sunak, whose parents moved to Britain from Africa in the 1960s, to form a new government Tuesday, a day after he was chosen leader of the governing Conservative Party.
The milestone is doubly significant for many people with Asian roots because it comes during Diwali, the five-day festival of light celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains.
Earlier this year, Sunak, a practicing Hindu, spoke about the significance of lighting Diwali candles outside the official Downing Street residence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the post he held for two years until he resigned in July.