Who is Lilian Seenoi-Barr? DUP man Sammy Wilson objects to Londonderry's new SDLP mayor due to her denunciations of the police and being 'colour-obsessed'

The DUP candidate for East Antrim was speaking as Lilian Seenoi-Barr got ready to take on the role of first citizen of Northern Ireland's second city on Monday.

He also described the much-feted nationalist politician as "colour-obsessed".

Councillor Seenoi-Barr has been asked to respond to his comments, but has not.

Lilian Seenoi-Barr protesting against 'the racist border on the island of Ireland' in Lifford, Co Donegal

Councillor Seenoi-Barr is a prolific racial campaigner who says that "racism is present in every nook and corner of these islands" and that black people face a "pandemic" of racism in the UK.

Here the News Letter looks more in depth at her views, and Mr Wilson’s concerns.

• WHO IS NEW MAYOR?

Councillor Seenoi-Barr is in her early 40s and came to Northern Ireland in 2010 as an asylum seeker from Kenya.

Lilian Seenoi-Barr addressing a rally in Guildhall Square, Londonderry as part of the Black Lives Matter movement, taking place in June 2020 amid lockdown restrictions

Her brother is Olekina Ledama, a member of the Kenyan Senate since 2017 and formerly an assistant producer at Reuters.

Since arriving in Northern Ireland, councillor Seenoi-Barr has been given grant funding for her own charity, the North West Migrants Forum, and has won a series of awards for her campaigning.

She was selected to lead the SDLP's Londonderry executive in 2019, co-opted as a Derry City and Strabane councillor in 2021, and then defended her seat in the 2023 elections.

The party HQ's put her forward as the city's next mayor last month, sparking adulatory headlines.

Scenes from the Londonderry BLM rally, where a minority of protestors were issued fines; a similar rally also took place in Belfast

But her selection also caused the resignation of two of her colleagues who complained that the SDLP top brass had over-ridden local reps to enforce councillor Seenoi-Barr as the only name on their selection list.

She largely came to public prominence during the Black Lives Matter street protests in Northern Ireland.

She was extremely critical of the PSNI's handling of the demos, which took place amid lockdown restrictions, saying the force was "one of the most racist institution in NI" (sic).

• 'REJECT PSNI UNTIL THEY APOLOGISE':

Scenes from the Londonderry BLM rally, where a minority of protestors were issued fines

After officers handed out fines to BLM protestors in June 2020 during the Covid crisis, councillor Seenoi-Barr met the chief constable and handed him a list of "demands" including the quashing of all the fines.

Several months later, in December of that year, she was still saying that "we should unite & reject any form of engangement untill they show respect," adding: "Acknowlede they treated us differently & issue a public apology.That will also send a strong message you can't use your devide & concur Strategy anymore".

Mrs Seenoi-Barr's tweets around the time of the BLM rallies included:

• -- "I do not remember PSNI ever trying to actively help us organise against racism... the PSNI chose to disrupt, intimidate and harass people attending a protest led by BME people.And you wonder why our community never trust the police?"

• -- (After a meeting with the chief constable): "We made it very clear yesterday that we met to relay our anger, hurt and frustrations with your force. We expect answers before we can even think of trusting the PSNI again."

• -- "We have been telling you that Racism is killing our people, when we protest peacefully to highlight institutional racism, you try to silence us. In the process you have helped expose racial biasness & institutional racism in NI justice system.THANK YOU!"

Scenes from the Londonderry BLM rally, where a minority of protestors were issued fines

• -- In response to someone complaining about the protests in the middle of the pandemic, she wrote: "And to be very clear Racism is a pandemic that we have lived with for centuries and the ten years I have lived in this country. How dare you try to play politics on a matter that is very personal to me?? Shame on you!"

After the BLM protests, a massive investigation by the Police Ombudsman chastised the PSNI for its "inconsistent" approach.

It contrasted the 61 fines it handed out at BLM protests on June 6, 2020 (involving maybe 2,000 protestors upwards) with a "Protect Our Monuments" protest on June 13 (of perhaps 300 protestors) at which no-one was fined – though the ombudsman said this disparity was unintentional and "not based on race or ethnicity".

• SDLP figures shy away from backing party colleague’s demand for PSNI to be condemned over George Floyd rally

• 'CITY IS ALREADY HARD TO POLICE' – WILSON:

Sammy Wilson has been critical of the BLM protests in NI, and the movement generally.

See here: Queen’s University criticised by MP for sending students for ‘unconscious bias training’

At that time, councillor Seenoi-Barr responded that he was part of an overarching social system of “systemic oppression” against black people (see here).

Speaking ahead of her becoming mayor of Londonderry, he told the News Letter she is "colour obsessed".

"First of all as a public representative, and one who wants to become a figurehead public representative, the first thing she needs to do is respect the police and the rule of law," he said.

He said that, as far as the officers handing out fines on the day were concerned, "they didn't do it because they were black... they did it because they were breaking the law – and for her to make the kind of remarks she does about confidence in the police and supporting the police and everything else, in a city which is already difficult to police, then I believe she's neglecting her civic responsibilities."

On the BLM movement more generally, Mr Wilson said: "I oppose Black Lives Matter because I believe first of all no life and no colour deserves better treatment than the other.

"And secondly, just because they've grievances about the past – which nothing can be done about anyway – doesn't give them the right to go around vandalising statues and whatnot."

Mr Wilson's criticisms of councillor Seenoi-Barr were put to her, and electronic receipts show she received them, but didn't respond to them over the course of a week.

• WOMAN OF THE YEAR:

Councillor Seenoi-Barr's organisation, the North West Migrants Forum, was set up a couple of years after arriving in Northern Ireland.

It now employs six people, promoting "integration" and "community cohesion".

In 2023 the charity had just over £250,000 in grants, mainly from public bodies.

She has been handed a clutch of awards: 'Woman of the Year' (at the Women on the Move Awards in London in 2014), 'Charity Worker of the Year' (by the Derry Journal in 2018), and a 'Good for Me Good for Further Education' award for her charity in 2023, presented in the House of Lords.

Her life in the UK is built on racial campaigning.

By the News Letter's count, in the last five years she has posted 147 messages containing the words "racist", "racists" or "racism", on Twitter alone.

In June 2020, when someone on Twitter questioned the idea of institutional racism in NI, she replied:

"Really, so tell me this, how many BME are in the policing board, how many BME work in the civil service, how many are managers, how many racist crimes have been recommended for prosecution? And the list go on!"

This drew the reply that "the population of NI is like 98% white so of course the majority of people in that or any work place are going to be white".

"Is that your excuse?????" replied Mrs Seenoi Barr. "So because you are majority, majority rules? You absolutely need to take attitudinal change classes. Educate yourself on what equality/ equity means."

The 2021 census said about 2.5% of the NI population is non-white (black people account for 0.58%), and another 0.76% are mixed race.

• Black Lives Matter supporter Gerry Carroll MLA of the Irish party People Before Profit says the slogan 'Irish Lives Matter' is 'racist poison'

• 'THE BORDER IS RACIST':

In addition to her criticism of police, she has also accused the authorities of racially profiling people at the Irish border, saying "as long as I breathe I will not stop until we end the Racist hard border in Ireland".

She added: "Intelligence-led immigration operations are welcome, but targeting everyone who is black and brown to prove their right to walk the streets of Dublin is blatant racial profiling.

"If checking every citizen, then that's fine."

Councillor Seenoi-Barr has called for people to be imprisoned for racist remarks.

When an England football fan tweeted out "n*****s ruined it for us" in the Euro2020 campaign, he was reported to police (later arrested), pilloried in nationwide media, and publicly suspended by property firm Savills (later fired).

Councillor Seenoi-Barr wanted more.

"Waiting for a full report of your actions to stamp out racism," she tweeted at Savills.

"Loosing a job is a start he should serve time in prison. Racism is a criminal office and it should have serious consequences. This is the only way we will stamp it out."

Speaking about comments made over the internet, she has also said: "A prison sentence will deter those who target leaders particularly women leaders."