Humza Yousaf's speech in context after Elon Musk 'racist' allegations

Read more: Elon Musk brands Humza Yousaf a 'racist'

The post had included a clip which has been widely circulated on social media.

It shows a speech Mr Yousaf made in Scottish Parliament, where he lists people in positions of power in Scottish society who are white. 

But that 45 second clip is a small part of a speech Mr Yousaf was making about anti-racism which has been taken out of context. 

When did Humza Yousaf make the speech?

Humza Yousaf delivered the speech on June 10, 2020 when he was Scotland's Justice Minister. 

It was as part of a debate showing solidarity with anti-racism protests which had spread all over the world in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. 

You can watch Mr Yousaf's speech for yourself below in full. It starts at the 1:55:19 mark. 

The full transcript of the speech can also be read on the Scottish Parliament website. 

What did Humza Yousaf say? 

During the speech, Mr Yousaf was making a point about racism and the underrepresentation of racial minorities in Scottish society. 

He said: "I am angry that in 2020 we are still dealing with overt racism, subtle racism, institutional racism and structural racism. Whatever form it takes, it is still racism."

The MSP for Glasgow Pollok said, while people may think racism is no longer commonplace, he did not have to cast his mind back particularly far  "to remember somebody calling me 'Paki'". He said his Twitter timeline was a "cesspit" of racism. 

And he said: "The events in the US force us to hold a mirror up to ourselves and to confront the racism that exists here: the unconscious, the subtle, the overt, the institutional and the structural racism. On all those fronts, Scotland is not immune."

Humza Yousaf (Image: PA)

He drew attention to the fact, out of more than 300 MSPs, in 20 years there had not been a single black member of Scottish Parliament, or a woman MSP of colour. There had only been four ethnic minority MSPs, all of whom were men. 

Mr Yousaf said: "I do not say that to point the finger; I say it because we have to make change."

He said he was the only non-white person in the room in 99 per cent of the meetings he goes to.

And, Mr Yousaf said: "Why are we so surprised when the most senior positions in Scotland are filled almost exclusively by people who are white? Take my portfolio, for example.

"The Lord President is white, the Lord Justice Clerk is white, every High Court judge is white, the Lord Advocate is white, the Solicitor General is white, the chief constable is white, every deputy chief constable is white, every assistant chief constable is white, the head of the Law Society is white, the head of the Faculty of Advocates is white and every prison governor is white.

"That is not the case only in justice. The chief medical officer is white, the chief nursing officer is white, the chief veterinary officer is white, the chief social work adviser is white and almost every trade union in the country is headed by white people. In the Scottish Government, every director general is white. Every chair of every public body is white. That is not good enough.

Read more: Why anti-racism education in Scottish schools is not to be feared

"I do not doubt that across the private sector, black and minority ethnic people are similarly underrepresented at senior levels."

My Yousaf said people should be made to feel "uncomfortable" about these facts. And he said it was not enough to not be racist, but said people "must be anti-racist".

The MSP said it was "to our shame" that there was no black MSP in Scottish Parliament to join the debate about Black Lives Matter. 

He ended the speech by reading out George Floyd's final words. And he said: "I hope that we are all angry. That should be our overriding emotion when we are confronted with racism.

"I hope that every single one of us takes that anger and uses it to recommit ourselves as anti-racist. Let us be judged by our deeds, and not just our words."