Damilola Taylor’s dad’s courage in the face of grief - and how he inspired others
Brooke Kinsella, grieving sister of teenager Ben, said she would ’never forget the powerful moment during the peace march in 2008 when, walking for opposite ends of London, our paths crossed in Piccadilly’
It was a remarkable moment when two bereaved people came together and shared their pain. In front of the Eros statue at Piccadilly Circus, there were just two people hugging – Richard Taylor, father of the murdered schoolboy Damilola, and Brooke Kinsella, grieving sister of teenager Ben.
Two boys who never met, and yet by September 2008 had come to symbolise the pain of all the boys killed that brutal London summer.
“I’ll never forget the powerful moment during the peace march in 2008 when, walking for opposite ends of London, our paths crossed in Piccadilly,” Brooke says now. “We instinctively embraced. That single moment symbolised the unyielding solidarity of our movement and our shared mission to prevent violence.”
Ben, 16, had been murdered on his way home from a night out just three months earlier, and Brooke’s pain was still raw. Richard had lost Damilola aged 10 to a vicious attack in a Peckham stairwell eight years earlier, though he told me he felt the pain of that loss on waking every single day.
He had also only just lost his wife Gloria, who passed away in April that year – two months before Ben had been murdered. Gloria had never recovered from the loss of her Dami, and had died eight years later from a heart attack.
Richard Taylor, Father of Damilola Taylor
Damilola was murdered at the age of just 10 ( Image: PA)
Richard fought on, dedicating his life to improving the lives of disadvantaged children by setting up the Damilola Taylor Trust and campaigning against knife crime. But the world lost him too on Saturday. The 75-year-old died after a battle with prostate cancer.
A statement on behalf of his family said: “It is with a heavy heart that the family announce the death of our beloved father, grandfather and uncle, Mr Richard Adeyemi Taylor OBE.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was among those paying tribute, saying: “Richard championed breaking down barriers to opportunity through the Damilola Taylor Trust, in honour of his son’s memory. He will be remembered for his courage, determination and message of hope. My condolences to Richard’s family and friends.” One of the many whose life he changed was Brooke. “Richard’s courage in the face of unimaginable grief was an inspiration to me,” she says.
Like Richard, Brooke became a powerful campaigner on the issue of youth violence and its causes, setting up the Ben Kinsella Trust, and speaking out despite her pain.
Brooke Kinsella, the grieving sister of teenager Ben ( Image: KenMcKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
“Richard became a close friend and confidant after Ben’s murder, sharing his strength and unwavering belief in justice,” she says. “We owe it to Richard’s memory to continue this fight.”
It was 2008, and London’s knife crime epidemic was daily news.
Working with Gary Trowsdale at the Damilola Taylor Trust, the Mirror had organised The People’s March against Knife Crime, two columns of young people walking across the capital to symbolise young people of all postcodes coming together. There were many bereaved parents, sisters, brothers, children, uncles and aunts among the marchers that day.
Brooke had led the march from the north. From the south came the unmistakable, dignified figure of Richard.
A large crowd of people participated in the Daily Mirror People’s march through London ( Image: Daily Mirror)
He had had a prostate operation only days earlier but was determined he would lead the march across the River Thames to Hyde Park. The Taylors had come to Britain in search of medical treatment for their daughter Gbemi, who was severely disabled. In seeking a life for her, Richard had lost his son and then his broken-hearted wife.
I was one of the first reporters on the scene of Dami’s murder, a horrific tragedy that led to a friendship with Richard and Gloria.
Ben was 16 when he was stabbed to death in an attack (Image: PA)
Central to Richard’s philosophy was a belief that young people should not be growing up in poverty in a rich country. He was horrified by the squalid state of the North Peckham estate, since razed and rebuilt.
Another memorable moment was bringing Richard together with rapper-turned-actor Ashley Walters, who had grown up on the North Peckham estate where Damilola was murdered. In his younger life, Ashley had been caught with a gun, and Richard gave him some fatherly, but straight-talking, advice.
Richard Taylor, father of murdered schoolboy Damilola Taylor, with Ashley Walters from So Solid Crew ( Image: Daily Mirror)
As a father himself, Ashley asked Richard how he had coped. Richard told him quietly: “If I continue to show anger, it won’t bring my son back.”
Damilola means “gift from God”. His own gift to the world was his father, who wanted to heal communities so that no other parent would ever have to feel his pain.
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