UK considers Gandhi coin to commemorate Indian independence icon
Al JazeeraMove part of growing interest in recognising contributions of people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. The United Kingdom is considering minting a coin to commemorate India’s independence hero Mahatma Gandhi, amid growing interest in recognising the contributions of people from Black, Asian and other minority ethnic communities. UK’s Finance Minister Rishi Sunak asked the Royal Mint Advisory Committee in a letter to pursue recognition of individuals from those communities, the UK Treasury said in an emailed statement late on Saturday. As part of a global reassessment of history, colonialism and racism triggered by the death in May of a Black man, George Floyd, in the United States after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, some British institutions have begun re-examining their past. In his letter to the RMAC, Sunak said members of the BAME communities have made a “profound contribution” and that the committee should consider recognising it on the UK’s coinage.