Thank you to Tom Wall for keeping the story of the Bristol protest alive in his long read (‘It was so wrong’: why were so many people imprisoned over one protest in Bristol?, 5 March). I’m the mother of one of the young people convicted of riot at the “kill the bill” protest in March 2021. My son is currently in prison serving his sentence. He was 19 years old at the time of the protest. A bright university student with no protest experience and no criminal convictions, he had never before been in trouble with the police. He was assaulted by the police like many others, but later put on a wanted list, arrested and charged with riot. This has affected him severely, and he tried to kill himself shortly after.
He was dragged through the courts, which affected his mental health even further. He couldn’t face any more pressure and pleaded guilty. It’s hard to describe the effect it has had, and will have, on him and the whole family for the rest of our lives. But we are united and we will get through this. As for my son, we know he will achieve greatness after prison. He’s studying while inside and is determined not to give up. He has all the support he needs from family and friends.
