'My 30-year struggle with racism in the Met'

Shabnam Chaudhri rose to become one of the Met's most senior female Asian officers, but she says she was unfairly treated throughout her career because of her ethnicity. Her experience highlights concerns about the treatment of BAME officers in the UK that have persisted for years, write the BBC's Oliver Newlan and Home Affairs correspondent Danny Shaw.
Shabnam Chaudhri always wanted to join the police. Growing up in London's East End she and her family regularly experienced racism, and she was determined to prevent others going through the same ordeal. "We had our windows smashed, had racist flyers put through our door, white families would abuse us verbally," she recalls.
One night, returning from the mosque where she taught, Chaudhri's mother was the victim of a racially motivated assault. A few days later her mother returned to their home with a new pair of trainers. When Shabnam asked what they were for, her mother explained it would be so she could flee attackers in future, and carry on her work at the mosque. "It taught me you could stand up to racism," she says. "From a young age I wanted to make a difference."