If you ever met Jamal Edwards, you will know that his smile lit up a room. That if he could help he would, or he would connect you with someone who could. On Sunday, when the news broke of Jamal’s death, it hit me deeply. He, like so many we have lost in this city, was a young black man with so much life ahead of him. He was generous, sweet and he not only cared about his city but created a sense of community in a metropolitan capital which so many often feel lacks a sense of home.
People will remember Jamal for his channel SBTV, which he started at the age of 15. It helped to launch the careers of household names like Ed Sheeran, Jessie J, Emeli Sandé and rapper Dave. But I think his true legacy, and what I loved and respected about him, was the role he played in the careers of so many young people whose names you won’t know.
In 2014 I was privileged to share the room with Jamal as he hosted the first ever social media event at Buckingham Palace. The occasion is famous for being when Princes William and Harry took their first selfie, but I will always remember Jamal’s kindness to the young people I was there with. My work to end FGM was just taking off, and we were lobbying the then education secretary Michael Gove to do more for girls at risk. I remember telling Jamal what I was doing, and him remembering our previous conversation at a Southbank event. I found his genuine passion, about an issue that one could argue was so far removed from him, humbling, but that was Jamal. He had a way, even at such a young age, to listen and show that he cared — and he did. He stayed in touch with the young people he met that day who were campaigning against FGM, and was always there when they needed a favour.
His death has sent deep shockwaves across London. The tributes to him on social media are heartfelt and genuine. In my family WhatsApp group, it was me who broke the sad news. Within minutes, two generations of my family had stories to tell of the role he had played in their lives and how utterly devastated they were. For the younger generation, Jamal will be an icon to look up to and miss. For my brother, Jamal always will always be the kid from down the road in Acton. And to me he will always be the young black man knew you needed to be the change you want to see in the world, and was that change.
To those who never met Jamal or knew of him, I’d say he was the sunshine and joy London felt during the 2012 Olympics. He was pure gold. I for one hope that Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries honours Jamal’s legacy in a permanent way. We need to do something that commemorates the diversity he brought to our media. In an industry that didn’t make room for people like him, he created space for himself.
In other news...
Many Londoners will be feeling a kinship with Ukraine today
As the news breaks of a war in Ukraine, I know that countless people across this city will be praying a little harder for de-escalation. London has for centuries been home to so many displaced by conflict, from Somalia to Bosnia, Rwanda to Syria. We know the realities of war.
As a child I lived through the Somali civil war which started when the then-president Siad Barré — who came to power in a coup d’état — invaded the north of the country, which is now Somaliland. There were radio announcements, raids on our houses and blackouts. I became used to seeing Russian tanks on my way to pick up something from down town with my grandmother. In the end, when war broke out, it was worse than I could have imagined. I think that the fear that it created in me will live on for generations to come. Let’s remember that many of our fellow Londoners will be triggered today, thinking of Ukrainians and feeling a horrific kind of kinship with those dealing with yet another power-hungry maniac ready to start war for his ego.
