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Racism, racial trauma and anti-racism podcasts

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Racism, racial trauma and anti-racism podcasts

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Lisa Aldridge
Head of Service for Safeguarding and Quality Assurance, London Borough of Hackney

Jeremy Bacon
Third Sector Lead, BACP

Orlene Badu
Author and leadership consultant at Orlene Badu Consulting

Deborah Barnett
Anti Racist Strategic Lead, Children and Education Directorate, London Borough of Hackney

Jacquie Burke
Group Director for Children and Education Directorate, London Borough of Hackney

Michael Golding
Deputy Chair, BACP

Jo Holmes
Children, Young People and Families Lead, BACP

Monica Imbert
Interim Director of Outcomes Business Intelligence and Strategy, London Borough of Hackney

Edith Stokes
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead, BACP

David Weaver
Former President of BACP

See the individual podcasts for full details

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Racism, racial trauma and anti-racism podcasts

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Lisa Aldridge Head of Service for Safeguarding and Quality Assurance, London Borough of Hackney Jeremy Bacon Third Sector Lead, BACP Orlene Badu Author and leadership consultant at Orlene Badu Consulting Deborah Barnett Anti Racist Strategic Lead, Children and Education Directorate, London Borough of Hackney Jacquie Burke Group Director for Children

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Turner Prize-winning artist Lubaina Himid says she was told "black people don't make art" before her career success.

Himid won the Turner Prize in 2017 for work addressing racial politics and the legacy of slavery.

The 65-year-old became the first black woman to win the award, as well as its oldest recipient.

She has said these firsts were "bittersweet" but gave people hope that UK art was becoming more diverse.

Speaking to Lauren Laverne on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, the Preston-based artist, born in Zanzibar, said: "We were not on the television, we were not in the newspapers, unless something drastic and dangerous happened.

"I guess the notion of black people being artists was completely alien to people in the British art world.

"Someone actually said to me 'black people don't make art'."

In 2017 Himid said she was "thrilled" to win but has since said the accolade was "bittersweet".

She added: "There are many black women that have been up for it in the recent history of the prize.

"I was happy to win it, but it was bittersweet.

"What people have said to me is that it gave people hope that things were changing."

Himid hopes these changes can be built upon in order to make the art world, and the rest of society, a fairer place.

She added: "The important thing is that we need to keep building on these changes.

"We have to keep vigilant, and just make sure everything is fair."

Himid was made an MBE in 2010 for services to black women's art.

The full interview can be heard on BBC Sounds and BBC Radio 4, on Sunday at 11:15.

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Turner winner told 'black people don't make art'

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Turner Prize-winning artist Lubaina Himid says she was told "black people don't make art" before her career success. Himid won the Turner Prize in 2017 for work addressing racial politics and the legacy of slavery. The 65-year-old became the first black woman to win the award, as well as its oldest recipient.

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Coverage: Watch on BBC Two, iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app; listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra; live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app.

In my first BBC Sport column, I want to talk about something that requires a lot of effort from black girls in rugby, but which we do not always discuss: hair.

I feel I have had to change my hair in order to fit in my sport.

If I were to wear my natural afro in a rugby match, by the time I finished, with it rubbing everywhere in tackles, it would be all over the place.

I choose to wear my hair in braids to protect it from getting damaged and dirty when I play.

It is easy to stereotype rugby girls because of the rough and aggressive sport we chose, but I am a big believer in 'look good, feel good, play good'.

England's Women's Six Nations matches are on free-to-air television - there are a lot of eyes on us.

With that in mind, I want a balance between having a hairstyle I feel comfortable in, one that is suitable for playing and one that I am happy with when I go out off the pitch too.

Hair is an interesting topic. A lot of people would not know all this and I would not expect them to because it is quite niche to the black community.

Unless you grew up with this hair or have learned about it, you would not know the deep-rooted connection a black girl has with her hair.

I think it would come as a shock to some of my friends if I had this conversation with them. That is why I want to start the conversation now.

Tackling misconceptions

There can be a misconception, especially about braids, that they are just worn to look pretty.

Any hairstyle that keeps natural hair underneath actually grows your hair and protects it. These are called protective styles and there is so much heritage and tradition that comes with them.

When I first started playing rugby in South London, it was with people who looked and sounded like me and my hair did not feel like an issue.

We would all style it in similar ways so nothing was a shock.

Rugby is a predominantly white sport and as I rose through it and felt more like a minority, I felt added pressure about my hair.

There is a social culture in rugby that means it is common to go out after games. I felt pressure to look nice and if I had worn my natural hair for a game, it would take me two or three hours to feel presentable after.

At first I decided not to go out. But with braids, I can play rugby with the hair that I want and still look good and feel good after. I felt like I could fit in.

'Flippant and naive questions'

There are comments I have received that have made me feel like my hair is not acceptable in rugby.

If I was not a person of colour and my hair was naturally long, I do not think I would get these comments.

My personal preference is to have my hair long because that is how I feel most confident.

Naturally, people are curious but they can ask flippant and naive questions, asking why my hair is so long and why I need to have it like it is.

I might come in with new hair which might be down to my waist and the first comment would not be, 'your hair looks nice', it would be, 'why is it that long?'.

Something that people do not understand is that a small comment about a black girl's hair could be something that is ringing around her head for the next couple of days.

It would help if people could just take my hair as it comes and not feel the need to ask why it is long, short or sticking up.

People think if they have a question in their head they have to ask it but sometimes if they just took a second, they might realise they could answer it themselves or that they do not actually need to ask it.

You could just say something positive instead of taking my hair as a spectacle.

If we were to flip the situation on its head, every time I asked someone with straight hair a question about it, it would seem weird.

I do have one other idea which I hope would encourage more black girls to stick with rugby.

When I go to bed, I wrap my hair in a satin headscarf because it keeps it neat.

When I am in England camp, as I am at the moment before our Women's Six Nations match against Wales on Saturday, I put my headscarf on at night and that means I do not have to do anything to my hair in the morning.

For matches, I wear a scrum cap to protect my hair and keep it off my face. I would love to have a scrum cap with a satin layer inside to protect my hair even more.

At the moment, black players in women's rugby are a niche community but maybe having something like a scrum cap for afro hair could contribute to changing that.
Sadia Kabeya was speaking to BBC Sport's Becky Grey.

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'It's time to talk about black rugby players' hair'

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Coverage: Watch on BBC Two, iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app; listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra; live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. In my first BBC Sport column, I want to talk about something that requires a lot of effort from black girls in rugby, but which we do not always discuss: hair.

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Bronfenbrenner's Model Adapted to Focus on Black Youth

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Bronfenbrenner's Model Adapted to Focus on Black Youth

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No More Exclusions is a Black-led and community-based abolitionist grassroots coalition movement. Our organising centres the voices and experiences of children and young people who have experienced oppressive education and exclusion.

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NEU2532 Anti-racist framework 2022 WEB v1

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by Liz Pemberton, Director of The Black Nursery Manager Training and Consultancy

Black History Month in the UK has been recognised since 1987 and was established by Akyaaba Addai-Sebo. Akyaaba was a special projects officer at the Greater London Council and then later at the London Strategic Policy. He recognised the need for Black people throughout the UK to have a month dedicated to celebrating and more importantly acknowledging the contributions of many Black Britons to the rich cultural tapestry of the UK.

Moving gradually away from a sole focus on largely African-American figures, most notably Martin Luther-King Jr or Rosa Parks, it has remained an important factor that the month of October in the UK was one that recognised the contributions of individuals such as Betty Campbell, Wales' first Black Headteacher, or Olive Morris who fought for Black women's rights in Britain during the late 60s and 70s.

Now, in 2022, it is equally important to remind our youngest children of the contribution of Black people to the societies that they are a part of throughout the UK especially as we aim to work towards more meaningful anti-racist practice. The need to provide children with a balanced perspective of their history in what can quite often be a very biased and unbalanced view of the history of the UK means that we should strive to reverse the sense of erasure of the contributions of Black people from our educational consciousness and there is no better place to start this work than in the early years.
Black History Month as tokenistic
It has been argued that to save all of the celebrations of Black people for one month in the year as a way of notably recognising their achievements is the height of tokenism and I would not completely disagree. As a Black woman and former nursery manager whose demographic of children and families attending my nursery were predominantly Black, the need to recognise October as a month of explicit celebration of Black people was admittedly not something that we did every year as we prided ourselves as a setting that actively "celebrated" the beauty of the many nuances of the multitude of Black cultures 365 days a year. It became embedded within our pedagogy. But I also recognise that this is not going to be the case for early years settings across the UK and so I would suggest that the need to introduce children, particularly in all-white settings, to important figures within Black Britain during Black History Month can be equally as valuable. I think that if executed meaningfully this can be a brilliant way to extend learning opportunities for all children.
Some key UK figures from history and the present to recognise for Black History Month in 2022

Phyllis Akua Opoku-Gyimah

Claudia Jones

Amy Ashwood-Garvey

Akala

Mary Seacole

Dr Yvonne Thompson

Trisha Cooke

Rageh Omaar

Laura Henry-Allain MBE

Dina Asher-Smith

Lenny Henry CBE

Roy Hackett MBE

Ramla Ali

Diane Abbott

Bukayo Saka

Trevor McDonald OBE

Marsha de Cordova

Hanan Ibrahim

Beryl Gilroy

Nadine White

Warsan Shire

David Olusoga OBE

Edward Enninful

Marcus Rashford MBE

Dapo Adeola

Stormzy

Dame Floella Benjamin DBE

Casey Bailey

Meaningful Black History Month celebrations for Pre-Schoolers (3-4 years old)
Meaningful must also mean relevant for the children that we are engaging with, and the context of history must not mean that we should forget about bringing this up to the present day. With this in mind here are some ideas:

Talk to the children about the brilliance of the current Black children's television presenters for example Nigel Clarke, Emma-Louise Amanshia, Gyasi Sheppy, Joanna Adeyinka-Burford. Have pictures of them displayed in your room and help children to make connections by asking questions such as "Have you seen *insert presenters name* on TV when you watch Cbeebies ?", "What do you love about *insert presenters name* ?". It is very likely that the children will be familiar with these people already and may also be able to draw on the similarities and differences between themselves and these individuals including the kinds of clothes that they wear, their hairstyles, the colour of their skin, whether they look like members of their family etc.

Incorporate the showing of different episodes of Laura Henry-Allain's hit children's TV show and first children's animation to centre a Black family, Cbeebies JoJo and Gran-Gran. They are also set to have a Black History Month special this year too which is perfect!

Plan your month carefully and intentionally around the children's interests and link these into Black History Month. You could think about everyday experiences for the children such as eating lunch/snack times. The power of food should not be underestimated, and this will give you a chance to research a range of African and Caribbean heritage food that the children may be able to try. Perhaps offer plantain crisps as an alternative at snack time or vary the fruits selection so that the children are eating mangoes, pineapple or soursop. Look at purchasing the Original Flava Cookbook by Shaun and Craig McAnuff for the person who makes your nursery meals so that they can attempt something new, get a copy of Rochelle Watson-Senyah's children's book The A to Z of African and Caribbean Foods, or the Wholefood Fruit Puzzle, created by the company Little Omo, for your nursery.

If there are Black people in your local community who lead in culturally specific activities that you could invite into the setting then this is ideal, although there are some things to consider here:

1. Do not invite people in and expect them to deliver their services for free - have a budget.

2. Plan way in advance! As a guide, if you are reading this article and it is already October plan for your invited guests to come in next year. You want to be respectful of people's time and expertise in whatever they do.

3. Make sure that you are thinking about the many ways in which Blackness is represented so be sure to acknowledge the intersections of Black LGBTQ members of the community, Black disabled members and Black Muslim or Jewish members of the community. You are aiming for a diverse representation for your children to see and interact with.

What not to do for BHM

Generally speaking, unless parents or carers offer, I would steer away from the expectation for Black parents to take the lead in your Black History Month activities at the nursery. This is a chance for you to really use your own initiative and invite all of the parents to be a part of this so that it is still a wholly inclusive month. Remember, celebrating one culture is not a rejection of anybody else's.

Do not single out the Black children and ask them things like "what do you do for Black history Month?". This is not helpful and doesn't approach the celebrations with sensitivity or respect.

Do not "dress the children up" nor dress yourself up as "Black people." Be conscious of stereotyping. That means steer away from brown body paint or pretending to be a rapper. Don't ask the Black children to come dressed in their "cultural clothes" to act as a spectacle for the other children. If you want to do an activity that centres cultural dress then you can do this by having clothes displayed on mannequins or fabrics on display for children to look at and touch.

The key for this time of the month is enjoyment for all. Don't let the fear of getting it wrong stop you from doing anything at all. Our society is made up of a variety of different people from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds and the UK is a place which has greatly benefitted from the contributions of Black people from the past and present. There is nothing wrong with showcasing these wonderful things during Black History Month at your early years setting!

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by Liz Pemberton, Director of The Black Nursery Manager Training and Consultancy Black History Month in the UK has been recognised since 1987 and was established by Akyaaba Addai-Sebo. Akyaaba was a special projects officer at the Greater London Council and then later at the London Strategic Policy.

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https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-5fafj-11157e4

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2.11 - EPM Special: Conversations on racism in sport

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The conversation should always be about more than just sport. In this EPM Special, Dr Pete Olusoga is joined by organisational psychologist and best-selling New York Times author, John Amaechi OBE, for an honest and inspiring conversation about racism, anti-racism, and what we all could or should be doing to make our communities fairer for everybody.

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A List to help you network and connect with Black Early Years colleagues.

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Report

We work to actively challenge racism. Below is a reporting form for young people (or adults on their behalf) to log incidents of overt, micro-aggressive or institutional racism. We focus particularly on the areas of education and policing (working closely with NPMP) and want to support individuals where possible, directly or through signposting.
Report an incident
We also run drop ins on Tuesdays from 4.30pm-6.30pm in Manchester Central Library café. Keep an eye on social media for updates on times.

Training

We offer training sessions for those working with young people. These aim to develop people's understanding of race and racism so they can better support young people of colour through society, challenge the racism that exists within institutions and create inclusive spaces within their practice.

From 2020, we will run one off training sessions for individuals to sign up to and can run sessions for your organisation or staff team. We are particularly interested in working with educational institutions.

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We work to actively challenge racism. Below is a reporting form for young people (or adults on their behalf) to log incidents of overt, micro-aggressive or institutional racism. We focus particularly on the areas of education and policing (working closely with NPMP) and want to support individuals where possible, directly or through signposting.

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Anti Racist Principles and Guidance Toolkit

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Anti Racist Principles and Guidance Toolkit

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Wellcome's anti-racist principles, guidance and toolkit | Wellcome

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A framework and toolkit designed to help Wellcome achieve racial equity in our organisation and work. This is not legal advice, it is a framework for how to be anti-racist at Wellcome.

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UNTOLD: Jailed Over A Group Chat | Channel 4 Documentaries

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It's not enough to say black lives matter

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It's not enough to say black lives matter

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By Niccola, on 21 June 2020
Cristina & Niccola from UCL Centre for Co-production have had numerous conversations over the past few weeks about the #BlackLivesMatter movement, about the need for the Centre to reflect and academia to change its behaviours and how we can all help make this happen.
"For me saying #BlackLivesMatter is like the equivalent to begging others to recognise me, to give me credence and to validate me for being me. I refuse to do that - when I already know that I more than matter. Who exactly am I asking for validation? A system that is built on what? Maintained by what? I am tired of hearing and feeling the pain of my brothers 'n' sisters worldwide". Tracie McCollin

Tracie, goes on to say:

"Dear White people,
You need to act, you need to be proactive in reforming, transforming and changing your systems. The system as Bob (Marley) said - that holds one race superior over others. This battle isn't ours, you all have to make that change, and you hold the power not us. We can make the noise. We can march. But it's down to you. I challenge you and hold you accountable for the change".

Thoughts from Niccola

I was horrified by the death of George Floyd, as were people around the world. But feelings aren't enough; in order to bring about change we need to take action. I want to take action. What has been done to date is not enough, not enough people or organisations, particularly within universities and research, recognise or demonstrate that black lives matter in the way that they act and in the policies, and systems that they put in place.

The figures show that:

"Fewer than 1% of the professors employed at UK universities are black and few British universities employ more than one or two black professors". The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)

The work of Nicola Rollock, Staying Power: The career experiences and strategies of UK Black female professors adds to this:
"A culture of explicit and passive bullying persists across higher education along with racial stereotyping and racial microaggressions".
As a white woman living in the UK I'm sure I've gained from white privilege without even realising it. Whether this was conscious or unconscious bias on the part of the person favouring me it is wrong and extremely maddening. I consider myself to be in the transformational zone of the 'Becoming anti-racist' diagram (see image below); I always try to actively challenge the structural racism in the institutions and systems around us. I am conscious to check and challenge myself in everything I do to try ensure that I remain here. Racism in whatever form is not OK and should be challenged at every turn. As the wife of a Black Londoner and mother of our child, making sure that change happens and soon, this is deeply personal for me. It matters on so many levels.

Please challenge yourself to think about your community or the organisation you work for, as to where you sit on the image below and if it isn't the growth or transformational zone, you need to question why.

At the Centre for Co-production, we are always striving for equality, diversity and inclusivity. We want to ensure that everyone, regardless of their ethnicity, gender, background, ability, or wealth, is able to get involved in the work that we do. We also recognise that people do not live "single issue lives" and may experience challenges to inclusion in more than one way. This intersectionality is something that we also need to reflect on. 'Our principles to live by' underpin everything we do and we work hard to live up to them by disrupting traditional power dynamics, breaking down barriers, and ensuring participation is an option for anyone (such as paying for internet data so people can join Zoom calls). However, one of our principles is to 'check and challenge throughout' recognising that we're not always going to get it right, and we need to do this when it comes to the diversity of people who are actually joining us, especially in relation to race. We aren't doing enough.

Outlined below in the 'So, what about the UCL Centre for Co-production?' section, is what we are going to do as a Centre to change this, to play our part in changing academia for the better.

Thoughts from Cristina

Over the years, I have had people directly insult me due to my Portuguese heritage, because of the slavery link. This has always given me a heavy heart knowing that our water irrigation system, the levadas, that many tourists visit, were built by black slaves with many dying in the process. Madeirans, the people from Madeira not mainland Portugal, have always been the 'throw backs' and seen as low status peasants. We used to be one of the poorest states of Portugal and the people were oppressed living under the dictator Salazar for 40 years. My parents left before the revolution of 1974, however I was brought up very much in the traditions of Madeira but right here in North London. Madeirans have attributes and mannerisms from colonised countries including Mozambique, Angola and Cape Verde. Food such as puff puffs from Ghana are so like our 'sonhos' meaning dreams. This dreamer attitude reflects the mass emigration from the island as so many were terribly poor and dreamt of better lives. An island just 500 km off the coast of North Africa and just up from the Gold Coast where much of the cuisine is similar to our own traditional dishes.

I have always been curious about my ancestry, being from an island which was only discovered 600 years ago. Both of my parents left their family homes by the time they were 9, they are from very different parts of the island yet both found themselves growing up in the city of Funchal. They were under 10 years old not even teenagers yet living and working in other people's homes; my mother a maid, my father the 'cow boy' (literally a boy with cows as there are few horses in Madeira). My father's earlier childhood was so unsettling he still rarely speaks about it and therefore beyond our grandparents' names we know little else. The family who took him in are 'our family'; maybe that's where our love for people not related by blood comes from. The ability to bond with others, more than with some of my many blood relations (I have around 50 1st cousins scattered across the world).

There has always been a sense of not being sure of what our history is, maybe that's why growing up I leant towards people that were similar in that sense, not in colour but in family experience - children of emigrants in search of a better life. When my father left Madeira in 1970 my sister was 1 month old. He left in search of work, first in Jersey then onto London with my mother joining him a year later with my sister. Our yearning to try and find out more led to Ancestry DNA tests and although 60% Portuguese from Madeira we discovered we have ancestors linked to Guyana and even a small percentage from Senegal and a non-specific percentage just referred to as North Africa.

Am I mixed race? No more than the next person and no less. But I am rich in diversity and my life experiences have been vast in terms of learning about cultures and the Caribbean islands of old friends from Grenada, Jamaica, Barbados and St Lucia to name a few as well as other countries like Egypt, Ghana and India. I spent many months over a period of 8 years in Goa, another old Portuguese colony, trying to connect with myself.

Do I see myself an ally? No, I'm much more. I see black people and the cultures that come with it as just part of my life, my loved ones, my closest friends and my beloved godsons who lost their mother Diane my best friend of 26 years last summer, they are 'my family'. To call them just friends and 'allies' feels to me like an insult and disrespectful of our strong lifelong bond.

Unless you have grown and witnessed the unjust ways black people are treated first hand, you cannot begin to understand the journey some people have had to take. Not that I don't see racism, I do, it cuts me deep. I will always call it out whatever way it comes. I am not scared for myself personally because I would put my life on the line for 'my family' - but I am scared for the future of my godsons. With no links to their blood relations (Diane didn't keep in touch with any) and having only known life in England they are 'Black British' men in a time where racism is rife around us.

I have learnt from my 'brother and sisters' that I am different, something I never really considered as I was just being me. And I am comfortable with that. I have experienced the backlash for being connected so solidly with 'my family' but this I know is a drop in the ocean compared to what goes on worldwide to black people every day.

The protests feel different this time - like there has been a shift in humanity and it's time to recognise that we all bleed when cut. If you find yourself lost and too scared to say you just don't understand, then you are already heading for that learning phase, as you recognise the need to be open and aware. My door will always be open for those conversations, you just need to knock so we can deal with the inequalities we see in front of us. 'My family' stand strong together with open arms...

Do we need white allies? Yes. We need those with the power to help us challenge and change the status quo. The image below shares a few small things that YOU can do TODAY. Please use the resources shared at the end of this blog to help you act straight away.

So, what about the UCL Centre for Co-production?

Historically, the people who have felt able to get involved in research has been particularly homogeneous - often White middle-class, men and women. This means that research (and healthcare more broadly) has been shaped towards their priorities and needs, and those from other groups have been neglected. Never has this been more obvious than now, with the disproportionate number of deaths from COVID-19 in the BAME community - worth a read are The Lancet 'Stereotype Threat' and 'Beyond the data: Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups' from Public Health England.

Racial diversity was on our minds even before the #BlackLivesMatter protests erupted again around the world. Pre COVID-19 and lockdown our face-to-face sessions were relatively diverse (53% of our co-producers were White British - if we compare to the regional and national picture we find that over 80% of the population in England and Wales, and 44.9% of the population in London are White British). Despite this, our move to virtual sessions has led to a decrease in the diversity of the groups, specifically in relation to participation of those from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. There may well be factors outside of our control that have influenced this, but that doesn't mean we don't have a responsibility to try and turn it around, and now.

Please have a read of our UCL Centre for Co-production in Health Research Commitment to Change: Diversity & Inclusion.

How can you get involved?

We are holding our next Co-production Network session on 14 July where this will be one of the key topics for discussion and inform our next steps. Please join us if you can! Similarly, if you have any thoughts in relation to how we could make sure we are building a genuinely diverse community of co-producers, please do let us know. You can add a comment below or drop us an email at coproduction@ucl.ac.uk and we can set up a time to chat. Thank you!

We want to learn, make changes and continue to strive for change, together.

So, here are some useful resources to help you

* White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
* The Guide to Allyship
* Anti-racism Resources
* Practical ways to support #BlackLivesMatter from the UK
We hope we have inspired you to act, thank you! Cristina and Niccola
Cristina Serrao, Lived Experience Ambassador, NHS England/Improvement and UCL Centre for Co-production Co-producer and Allies Group member. Find her on Twitter @acserrao76

Niccola Hutchinson-Pascal, UCL Centre for Co-production, Find her on Twitter @Niccola_CPD

Tracie McCollin, Eudaimonist, Youthworker, Trauma Mindfulness and Embodiment Coach

With thanks to Mark Agathangelou, Freelance editor/writer for the proof reading help!
Please note: The Centre are aware that the UCL Buildings Naming and Renaming Committee have been asked to start the formal process of considering the current naming of UCL spaces and buildings after prominent eugenicists. As a Centre this is something we are very keen to see the outcome of - we will continue to campaign for all of the names to be changed.

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It's not enough to say black lives matter. Time for academia to show it!

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By Niccola, on 21 June 2020 Cristina & Niccola from UCL Centre for Co-production have had numerous conversations over the past few weeks about the #BlackLivesMatter movement, about the need for the Centre to reflect and academia to change its behaviours and how we can all help make this happen.

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The #BAMEOver Live Debate

On Friday 4th September over 250 of us came together to hear from speakers who shared their own lived experiences, debate openly in a safe space and vote live on what we want to be called.

Check out the brilliant coverage of #BAMEOver on Radio 1Xtra, The Independent and Newsweek. You can also read Leo Wan's insightful write-up of the event and own thoughts on the campaign here.

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Inc Arts UK: diversity and inclusion in the arts

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The #BAMEOver Live Debate On Friday 4th September over 250 of us came together to hear from speakers who shared their own lived experiences, debate openly in a safe space and vote live on what we want to be called. Check out the brilliant coverage of #BAMEOver on Radio 1Xtra , The Independent and Newsweek .

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Unapologetics - disabled creatives who have lived experience of racism

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Unapologetics - disabled creatives who have lived experience of racism

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Delivered through three related strands of activity from Spring 2021 to Autumn 2022, Onyx is a vital package of timely support and creative work for and led by disabled creatives and freelancers.

The project originated as part of DAO's 2020 Covid-19 response and urgent anti-racism activity. Onyx makes a firm commitment to employing freelancers and initiating care-driven, sustainable working practices, aiming to embed anti-racism into DAO and challenge intersectional discrimination in the wider sector.

Onyx's debut publication, Onyx: Practising Unapologetics! is available to buy now.

[Image right: Detail from Ashokkumar Mistry's The Dance of the Cane Cutters]
The Onyx Manifesto - practising unapologetics!
We come together as listeners, visual artists, community organisers, performance makers, dancers, healers, poets, writers and daydreamers, offering our own unique relationship to living with (dis)ability, long-term health conditions and/or illness.

We believe in a practice of unapologetics, dialogue, alongsideness, disagreement, learning from each other, nurturance, rest and the potency of vulnerabilities. We believe in the importance of creating spaces for us and future generations to become-in, breath and be received.

We aim to create and preserve spaces where our voices, ideas and practices are centred, to build community, collaborate, create and constantly dis-cover what 'the work' is. And to honour and add to the growing lineage of Black, Asian, intersectional UK (dis)ability makers/artists.

We offer space to experiences that are often unheard, unacknowledged and unwitnessed in the dominant culture, other makers with similar lived experiences and critical, engaging and entertaining expressions.
STRAND 1: The Onyx Collective
We invite others to get involved, ask sincere questions, rest, be moved, invest, drink more water, celebrate our lives and work, collaborate.

A group of seven artists who share the lived experience of disability and racism, are nurtured and resourced to: create new work that results in a publication, leading on selection and commissioning; instigate its own programmes; and be a critical friend to DAO and critique the wider sector.
STRAND 2: Mentoring
The artists are: whats thebig mistry, Ashokkumar Mistry, Miss Jacqui, Alexandrina Hemsley, Kuli Kohli, Ngozi Ugochukwu and Omikemi. Nila Gupta, the eighth artist in the original collective, sadly passed away in 2021. They remain included and honoured here and in the Onyx Publication launching in July 2022. Dolly Sen and Debs Williams also contributed to the initial discussions about forming the collective and seeking project funding before stepping aside due to other commitments.
STRAND 3: Artist Presentations
DAO are employing two of the Onyx Collective - Omikemi and whats thebig mistry - to deliver one-to-one and group artist development sessions and webinars that are more relevant to a diverse range of artists.
The Onyx Collective Biographies
The Onyx Collective are commissioning a range of artists to deliver accessible artist presentations and conversations - to energise the sector with creative, reflective, informative and critical digital content for audiences across multiple regions of England.

Alexandrina Hemsley's practice is shaped by the morphing disciplines of dance, performance, film, mentoring, creative and critical writing. They work with intricate improvisation scores and vivid performance environments which insist on conjuring embodied enquiries into a multiplicity of voices. This includes work within organisations around anti-racism, anti-ableism and embodied advocacy. It is a life long, nuanced undertaking. In June 2020, Alexandrina founded her company Yewande 103 which lives as compassionate, embodied advocacy in action, through choreography, writing, production, artist support and mental health discourse. Alexandrina is Associate Artist at Cambridge Junction, International Associate Artist 2020/21 at Dance Ireland and a What Next? Steering Group member. They are also a Somerset House Studios Resident (2016 onwards with their collaboration with Jamila Johnson-Small, Project O).

Ashokkumar Mistry is a multidisciplinary artist, writer and curator working in the UK and internationally. By subverting technologies, he challenges conventional ways of making and viewing art. "As a person who sees and experiences the world differently, much of my work is concerned with my interactions with the world and how I make sense of everything". He is currently Associate Artist with Disability Arts Online, a Development Artist with The Spark Arts and a Fellow of the International Association Of Art Critics (AICA-UK). Ashokkumar has been commissioned by the BBC and a number of galleries such as the Lowry and Southbank Centre to create artworks and exhibitions. As a curator, he has worked with AIS for a number of years developing innovative and thought provoking exhibitions. Ashokkumar has also developed a number of exhibitions in Taiwan for National Cheng Kung University and A-Glow space.

Miss Jacqui is a spoken word artist, songwriter and facilitator who always tries to challenge societal perceptions, like what it actually means to be a black woman with a disability. Miss Jacqui has worked with Halfmoon Young People's Theatre, Theatre Royal Stratford East, National Youth Theatre and Roundhouse, just to name a few. She has performed at various locations including the 2012 Paralympic Team Welcoming Ceremonies, Southbank Centre, and Roundhouse.

Kuli Kohli runs a Punjabi Women's Writing Group. Kuli is a published poet and has performed around the West Midlands, London, Liverpool, Oswestry and via Skype to India. Kuli was a guest lecturer at Humboldt University in Berlin. Last year, she performed at the British Museum for #PurpleLightUp celebrating International Disabled Persons Day. In 2020, Kuli's life story was featured on BBC News online leading to being featured on BBC One's Sunday Morning Live show.
Nila Gupta was an artist, writer and cultural critic, specialising in race, class, gender, disability and performance. They were a working-class British Bengali genderf*cker, bi and trans person of colour, with multiple complex disabilities. They were a DAO journalist and co-founded the first Onyx Collective. Read more about Nila in DAO's tribute from July 2021
Ngozi Ugochukwu is a self-taught photographer. She has had her work shown at HOME, a centre for international contemporary art in Manchester. As part of a British Council conference in Hong Kong looking at the arts and its importance for, and impact on three groups: old, young, and disabled people. Her Stairs Project explored the beauty behind this overlooked architectural feature from the unique perspective of her wheelchair. Ngozi's current project on scars, their meaning and affect on us was commissioned by DaDaFest International, under the theme of Translations 2020.

Omikemi has a creative & healing arts practice as a writer, community organiser and body worker. They currently work as a freelance writer for Disability Arts Online & run Heartwood, an online & in-person Black LGBTQIA+ centered bodywork service.

is a multidisciplinary artist, socially engaged practitioner and creative producer straddling visual, performance and live art. Mistry's practice adds to discourse on topics of mental health/neurodiversity, feminist politics, identity, sex and queerness, whilst deconstructing language, exploring sensory/non-word based vocabularies. whats thebig mistry is Associate Artist with Disability Arts Online, In Good Company consortium, New Art Exchange, Artist Member at East Side Projects and Chisenhale Dance Space and Quarter Master for Artistic Mutiny. She's a collaborator with artist Bobby Baker at Daily Life Limited- (Mental Dis/ability Arts Organisation) including work with William Morris Gallery and Diagnosing Diagnosis Symposium with The Wellcome Collection.

To receive news and updates from Disability Arts Online and the Onyx artists, sign up for our newsletter.

Onyx is a Disability Arts Online (DAO) project, funded by Arts Council England.

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The Onyx project puts disabled artists and creatives with lived experience of racism in the driving seat. Delivered through three related strands of activity from Spring 2021 to Summer 2022, Onyx is a vital package of timely support and creative work for and led by disabled creatives and freelancers.

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One dance - decolonizing the curriculum 

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One dance - decolonizing the curriculum 

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The Hip Hop Literacy Program is an interactive and fun way of learning about Rhythm and Poetry. The origins of Hip Hop culture, the history of rap, how to improve your writing skills are some of the topics covered. Rap is a language that speaks to young people in a powerful way, which is why we use it to engage them. Our inspirational rap artists will have students appreciating and enjoying the spoken and written word. This program has proven to be very effective, especially with disengaged students. We use proven strategies to:

Improve writing skills and expand vocabulary

Develop speaking and listening skills

Encourage critical thinking

Explore poetic devices employed in rap e.g. rhyme schemes, metaphors, similes, punch lines, wordplay etc.

Build up student's confidence

"Our students really enjoyed the Hip Hop Literacy sessions, which showed how they could have fun with words, rhythm and rhyme. The rap artist really connected with them and was funny but also inspiring about issues such as the need to set yourself challenges and aim high, to believe in yourself and to share worries and problems with someone else. I wanted them to see that poetry could be cool and now they do!" Jackie Murrell - Bromley High School
A full day of workshops can be for up to 4 classes (assemblies also available). Students will take part in a mixture of presentations and interactive activities giving them the opportunity to create their own raps or poems and perform them at the end of the session. This is great if you are looking for a fun day or 2 of engaging students and inspiring their minds through lyrics and music. We also have longer residencies to focus on bigger outcomes.

We run a 12-week programme (one session a week) for a class. The students take part in an array of interactive activities. They will analyse lyrics, learn the ingredients of writing, watch an exciting Hip Hop presentation and participate in writing and performance exercises that will help them create their very own raps or poems. At the end of the 12 weeks, the students will perform in front of a live audience.

During the 12 weeks, students will have the opportunity to create either a school music video or work on an anthology of their work. Each participant will receive a copy as well as a few copies for the school library.

This course is perfect for giving students time to build up their literacy skills, and improving their confidence.

We also run a shorter 6-week programme (one session a week) for a class, where students will learn new innovative writing techniques and will have the opportunity to create and perform their very own raps or poems to an audience at the end of the course.

This is great for schools who may not have time to complete the 12-week program but still want to inspire their students and improve their literacy skills through music and creative writing. For schools outside of London we can condense the 6-week course into one week. One session a day for 5 days.

Student of Life has a number of facilitators (poets, rappers, authors etc) who are masters in their respective fields, have valid DBS clearance and work well with young people. Creating a safe space for learning, fun and creativity.

We work with a class group size, so around 30 students at a time. We require a member of staff to be present also. For rap performances and talks we can perform to a whole assembly, be it a whole school, key stage or year group.

Send an email to info@studentoflife.co.uk stating that you'd like to book our programme and we'll fix dates and make it happen.

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HIP HOP LITERACY The Hip Hop Literacy Program is an interactive and fun way of learning about Rhythm and Poetry. The origins of Hip Hop culture, the history of rap, how to improve your writing skills are some of the topics covered. Rap is a language that speaks to young people in a powerful way, which is ...

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Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you'll be able to...

Demonstrate an understanding of the history of colonialism and colonial thought with respect to the development of the university and other educational institutions

Explain to your colleagues and peers the critical importance of decolonial approaches in creating a fully inclusive educational learning environment

Identify and engage with the distinct legacies of colonialism across a range of disciplines in the social sciences, STEM and arts and humanities

Identify and assess appropriate actions and approaches that would be effective in developing decolonial practices in your own educational setting

Design and lead a change process that includes students, colleagues and other stakeholders in a joint programme of decolonisation.

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Decolonising Education: From Theory to Practice - Decolonial Theory Course

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Learning on this course On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments. By the end of the course, you'll be able to...

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In this series, the Runnymede Trust, the UK’s leading race equality think tank, explores why it is important to teach race, migration and empire in schools, and how we can empower educators to do so. Teaching Race Matters is presented and produced by Alba Kapoor and Nannette Youssef, and edited by…

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Like thousands of other people, my brother and I have endured severe pain throughout our lives through living with the debilitating condition of sickle cell disease.

As infants we were both poorly. I was diagnosed with sickle cell at birth and my brother at nine months. We moved to the UK from Kampala, Uganda and settled in East London, in the borough of Newham at the ages of five and nine. Of our four other siblings, two have not inherited the condition, whilst the other two carry the sickle cell trait.

General interventions and medications such as hydroxyurea, morphine and blood transfusions were hit and miss, usually giving relief for a period but the sickling would return with vengeance. It's hard to keep count of the significant birthdays, events, milestones and chunks of education we have missed whilst we were both admitted into various hospitals as a result of this disease.

As part of a three month stay in hospital in 2016, I took my GCSE's whilst admitted on the ward. I once spent two weeks in intensive care with doctors misdiagnosing me with chronic pancreatitis.

My brother managed to achieve a university degree, struggling with minimal attendance, extreme fatigue and always being medicated. The impact on mental health has been enormous especially with the stigma that depending on high doses of pain medication equates to simple addiction by healthcare workers. This stigma is not only found in healthcare but in society at large whereby you're stuck between fighting sickle cell and fighting to prove that you're actually suffering.

The condition has affected our immune systems; both my brother and I have had necrosis of the hips, leading my brother to have a hip replacement.

In October 2020, after the first lockdown, we travelled to Uganda for a break. We met with our childhood doctor, the great, late Professor Christopher Ndugwa, a renowned sickle cell specialist who, after assessment, urged us to seriously consider an intervention - that's when we first considered the 'haplo' bone marrow transplant**.

We pondered heavily on the idea and brought it to the attention of our NHS consultant who we concluded wasn't that interested. It was a difficult decision with lots of mixed feelings and fears within the wider family. But we both knew we didn't have many options as most of the interventions had ceased to work, we were basically dying slowly.

My health, in particular, was in very bad decline. I had already spent over six months in hospital by then. Meanwhile my brother was unable to receive regular blood exchanges. The family spent a lot of time in hospital, there was fear and an expectation that I may not pull through, the lockdowns just added to the intense strain we were all under.

Back in the UK, in November, we finally decided to take the plunge and started a GoFundMe page - boosted by my Twitter account - aiming hopefully to raise £60k. We made enquiries in private hospitals in the US, Turkey and India. Over a course of six months, we raised around £40,000 towards treatment and finally decided on having the transplant in India.

Although we made the trip to India within six months, it wasn't all plain sailing. The treatment was intensive and risky with lots of odds and complications - potentially leading to muti-organ failure.

We met the first private hospital consultant via Zoom. Once we arrived in India and, after reviewing us against our medical notes, he was overwhelmed by the complexity of our health. In the end he bottled it, using the then current outbreak of Covid in India as the reason why he couldn't continue with the transplant.

We had travelled thousands of miles and were already there! Resolved in our decision, we immediately found another doctor who was willing to do the treatment. It was a risk with complications that could potentially lead to death. The original plan was for my sister and brother to donate but the final donations came from my mother and older brother.

We stayed in India for four months and received chemotherapy as part of the treatment. I contracted sepsis and was close to not making it, but thankfully I finally pulled through. We are also thankful to the NHS for taking on our ongoing care since we returned to the UK in September 2021.

We have certainly felt the impact of never being offered counselling or mental health support over the years, it's imperative that healthcare professionals really listen and provide well-being support.

Today, one year and five months later, we are living free from sickle cell. Everyday activities such as going on long walks and socialising with our friends - things that people take for granted are now options.

Our Community Interest Company (CIC) - ' Weren't Born Rich' - grew out of beating the odds to survive and our work inspires others facing obstacles and challenges with a determination to eliminate sickle cell. It's essential people living with sickle cell know there is hope and other options.

Looking back, what has been really frustrating is the number of negative hospital encounters and healthcare professionals who don't comprehend or understand the depth of pain we endure. The pain is off the scale, a crisis can feel like a constant hammering, imagine an endless knifing, stabbing pain - it's hard to describe, much less so when you're forced to present at A&E in delirious pain.

Both our transplants in India were successful. On return to the UK, we spent time in hospital having check-ups but we have since been fully cured of sickle cell disease. Now we just carry the sickle cell trait. We believe it was worth the risk, we would both do the same again.
Our top tips for supporting sufferers of Sickle Cell Disease

Try to look into other forms of pain relief instead of just medications that may have terrible side effects

Agree to try cures on willing and qualifying patients especially if the treatment has been done before (including in different countries)

Offer patients therapy - cognitive and other talking therapies for mental health

Educate kids about sickle cell disease from a young age

Push to test at risk communities and educate them on the consequences of having the trait. We ask that a program to start testing school children as well as adults should start especially in light of recent coverage from the NHS that sickle cell is the most growing hereditary disease in the UK.

Support patients at home to reduce time spent in hospital. Schools, universities, and workplaces should educate themselves on sickle cell to better support sufferers.

Offer different treatment options to patients and discuss options openly rather than forcing or not leaving any choices.

Have a network of patients who support health care professionals in understanding the needs of patients.

Ask and listen to the patients' needs and wants

Be more compassionate on patients and understand that pain is perceived differently by individuals

Educate the community that sickle cell is a serious condition which needs support and acceptance

Have a strong network of people who really understand the illness

** Haploidentical Transplantation is currently being researched in the UK, subject to a randomised trial by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
Nabila and Fauzan Mpanga
Sickle cell sufferers considering new treatment should discuss their eligibility and options with their healthcare provider. This blog represents the personal experience and opinions of the authors and should not be taken as medical advice.

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'Haplo Transplant' Cured Our Sickle Cell Disease - NHS - Race and Health Observatory

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Like thousands of other people, my brother and I have endured severe pain throughout our lives through living with the debilitating condition of sickle cell disease. As infants we were both poorly. I was diagnosed with sickle cell at birth and my brother at nine months.

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Race Card Leeds Launches Anti Racism Media Toolkit

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We empower young people and educators across the UK to engage with Black British history 365 days a year.

One of our main goals since 2019 has been to embed Black histories into the UK national curriculum.

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We empower young people and educators across the UK to engage with Black British history 365 days a year. One of our main goals since 2019 has been to embed Black histories into the UK national curriculum.

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Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism and the oppression of specific racial groups.

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Preventing hair discrimination in schools

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Discriminating against pupils in relation to or because of their hair may have a negative effect on pupils' mental health and wellbeing. As schools have a safeguarding obligation to protect pupils from race discrimination and bullying, it is good practice for schools to invest in professional development and training for staff in this area.

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Annual Race Lecture - Leeds Beckett Events 

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Annual Race Lecture - Leeds Beckett Events 

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The murder of George Floyd in the USA in 2020, and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on racialised minorities has exposed and worsened longstanding systemic inequalities. How do we advance race equity in light of this and previous 'pivotal moments'?

For this year's Annual Race Lecture, Carole Gentles, Arfan Hanif and Rachel Boyle, facilitated by Prof Vini Lander, will reflect on how we draw from past and current contexts to dismantle unfair power imbalances where we work, learn, and in healthcare.
S﻿PEAKERS RACHEL C BOYLE
Rachel C. Boyle is the Dean of Carnegie School of Education and formerly the Head of Interdisciplinary Studies in the Carnegie School of Education, and is the first women of colour to be appointed as dean at Leeds Beckett University. She is a former Primary School teacher who spent many happy years teaching the children of Huyton, Liverpool before she made the move in higher education in 2010. After ten years working at Edge Hill in Lancashire, Rachel was delighted to join the team at the Carnegie School of Education in 2020.

Rachel's passion and research focuses on race, racism ethnicity and education. She uses critical race theory as a theoretical framework to examine 'race' inequalities in society, specifically in education. The experiences she had growing up as a mixed race child in the 1980s have underpinned Rachel's passion for and commitment to addressing racial inequality in education. She has worked with trainee teachers to examine the impact of race, racism and ethnicity on the educational experiences of children and young people. Rachel encourages her students to develop an understanding of the position of the 'other' and to use their voices to ensure that the teaching profession consistently evolves to meet the needs of the children it serves.

More recently Rachel has worked across the media to provide commentary on societal issues of racism including the death of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement and racism within the UK.
CAROLE GENTLES
Carole is a Leeds native who has worked for over 30 years in both the local authority and third sector. Having carried out many roles, much of her work has been alongside disadvantaged and marginalised communities. She currently manages a team within the Adaptations Service and is the joint Chair of the BAME staff network within Leeds City Council.
ARFAN HANIF
Arfan is an experienced senior leader with 3 decades of leadership experience working in different parts of the country and covering a wide range of multi-disciplinary areas in the public and charity sectors.

Arfan is currently CEO of Touchstone which delivers several mental health and wellbeing services across the diverse communities of South and West Yorkshire. Arfan first made contact with Touchstone as a service user 10 years ago after travelling through the institutional mental health pathways of the Health system.

Arfan believes that all lived experience including adversities are powerful assets in an accepting, inclusive and compassionate environment.  Arfan is a leader guided by lived experience and inclusiveness - putting the needs of people first.
PROFESSOR VINI LANDER
Vini Lander is Professor of Race and Education and Director of the Centre for Race, Education and Decoloniality in the Carnegie School of Education.

Vini's research focuses on race, ethnicity and education. She uses critical race theory as a theoretical framework to examine 'race' inequalities in education, specifically in teacher education. The persistence of educational inequality from early years to higher education has spurred Vini to educate teachers to think beyond the status quo, which may perpetuate these inequalities. Teachers make a valuable contribution and deserve better preparation to teach in a diverse society. This has led to her inspirational teaching. Vini challenges students to think differently, supporting them to find ways to act to make a difference.
PROFESSOR MARIA MAYNARD
Maria Maynard is Professor of Health Inequalities, specialising in the patterning of health by ethnicity and migrant status. Her interests include how racism and other structural discrimination and exclusion shape physical and mental health and their intersections. Maria is Chair of the University's Race Equality and Diversity Forum
Please join us from 17:00 for registration and refreshments in Carnegie School of Sport on Headingley Campus, Leeds Beckett University. The lecture will start promptly at 18:00 in Lecture Theatre 1. Complimentary carparking is available on-site. Please use this postcode for satnav directions - LS16 5LF

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annual race lecture 2022 - in person registration

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annual race lecture 2022 - in person registration tickets

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annual race lecture 2022 - in person registration city

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annual race lecture 2022 - in person registration city tickets

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Annual Race Lecture 2022 - In person registration

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The murder of George Floyd in the USA in 2020, and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on racialised minorities has exposed and worsened longstanding systemic inequalities. How do we advance race equity in light of this and previous 'pivotal moments'?

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Tiana Akoh-Arrey wrote her first book at the age of seven, called My Afro: Twin Best Friends.

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Tiana Akoh-Arrey wrote her first book at the age of seven, called My Afro: Twin Best Friends.

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Just over a dozen Black men squeezed into an oval shape, in a restaurant-basement Streatham, south London. The occasion - MANIFEST - a therapeutic workshop for Black men of all ages. When I booked my ticket from Angola to London for the weekend, I didn't quite know what to expect, but, when you're interviewing Yomi Ṣode, there's no better place than that which feels like his hometurf.

I was on time; he must have been early. Except for a snappy introduction prior to the event, and some head nods and thumbs to check I was all right, Yomi remained unassuming. The event included an open circle segment so I kind of felt as though I had cheated by drawing an insight of his psyche just before our sit-down. After wandering for a bit - and teasing about whether Streatham was south-east or south-east London - we found a local restaurant to host our interview.

Naturally, I first had to ask how the idea of Manorism had come about.

' I was interested in how code-switching works in the body. Whether it be between elders, colleagues, friends . . .'

Without further prompting, Yomi walks me through how the etymology of the word 'Mannerism' sent him down a rabbit hole, stumbling into seventeenth-century art history, and he came across Caravaggio. 'Caravaggio was the bad boy of the art world,' he says, with no feigned admiration. Manorism isn't here to further venerate this archetype. Mannerism is an artistic style characterised by slight distortions in the human form - pioneered by the likes of Caravaggio. In the semantic sense, Caravaggio couldn't be less of a mannerist - Brash, violent and impulsive. Yomi threads tales of Caravaggio's exploits in parallel with the protagonist in the text, to expose the nature of the grace afforded to famed white men in Renaissance Europe, and to ask how even Black male celebrities. such as J Hus and AJ Tracey aren't afforded that same grace five centuries later. And, indeed, how much less grace is given an everyday Black man. This is best seen in 'A Plate of Artichokes', a personal standout in his Caravaggio series.

In two stanzas and a couple of breaths, we follow a split-screen sequence of Caravaggio and the Black male protagonist, both responding to being slighted at a restaurant: one man drew for a dagger; the other only "dreamt of violence" later that evening.

'I'm not tryna do that thing where we learn about racism through the lens of whiteness; these are still my experiences.'

'We are fortunate that we are here, but a lot of this book is about the misfortunes of being here.'

Yomi seems to be just as concerned about what the book isn't about as what it is about. 'This book isn't about racism,' he insists. Manorism also looks at fatherhood, family, masculinity, religion and death. In spite of this, Yomi retains a concealed anxiety that a literary reception will be hijacked with a barrage of reductionist takes.

And yet race, if not racism, is an omnipresent and unavoidable filter through which we receive the text.Through a range of narratives, Yomi presents the multiple ways in which racial dynamics unfold, both covertly and overtly. In 'A Green Tweed Coat', Yomi skillfully introduces a frequent conundrum at his office job, where " the tweed overcoat is on the floor again" and no one wants to talk about it. The fourth wall is only broken by the trainee who " has not yet learned to unsee it". Despite the coat having migrated to the centre of the office via unconscious trips and steps by colleagues, it still hasn't been seen.

The Black British experience is inherently dichotomous, and there is no way around this. Yomi isn't naive enough to disregard his own privileges. 'We are fortunate that we are here, but a lot of this book is about the misfortunes of being here.'

'Everyone's expecting me to say something, but this time I'm not gonna say something about it. But, in me choosing not to, am I complicit in the behaviour? And I am, says Yomi.

He jokes about his years of experience in dealing with passive and microaggressions, and I wonder that it's near impossible for [us] to be able to succeed without this ability to deal with aggressions. So where is the victory in this 'skill'? How do we reclaim our pride?
'Do we ever [reclaim our pride]? Where is the victory apart from a conundrum and gaslighting?'

Try as I might, I couldn't squeeze a happy ending out of Yomi.

But it's all too easy for these interracial aggressions to cloud the intraracial aggressions and injustices that Manorism also conveys. Pure, human injustices.

'About Hands: An Uncle' details the process in which a mother punishes her son for stealing 'About Hands: Somebody's Child' follows a young boy being tortured on the street for accidentally shoplifting.'"About Hands" Two ["Somebody's Child"] addresses what happens if "About Hands" One ["An Uncle"] doesn't happen.' The prequel is illustrated so viscerally you can feel each incision between the knuckles, a quasi-ceremonious affair, but by the time we confront the horrors of the sequel, the end justifies the means.

'When you're Black, the price of simply forgetting is fatal.'

And 'Black excellence' - success, and its celebration in the Black community - doesn't seem to be a viable solution either. In his piece 'Manorism I: On the Cultural Representation of Black Britain' Yomi documents how our modern-day Caravaggios, such as AJ Tracey, aren't safe. AJ Tracey is being demonized for the same lyrics, by the same community which thrust 'Alex from Glasto' into rarefied air . . . for his own lyrics! Alex from Glasto was apparently approached about record deals a few weeks later. Yomi told himself, 'Damn, they got me again, I fell for it." Unlike Alex, we aren't able to turn the cameras off on our reality.

He doubles down on this in his piece 'J Hus is Caught with a Knife, Samira Mighty Leaves Love Island &' 'I think of Killmonger taking the warhammer back to Wakanda, Stormzy calling Theresa May a paigon, or the Carters hiring the Louvre, cornrowing hair before the Mona Lisa,' That's Black Excellence. And somehow one of his oldest friends Yinka's idea of Black excellence has been reduced to the allowing and benefitting of his own fetishisation by white women. It truly is different things to different people.

'I wonder if there's a white woman that looks into Yinka and takes offence, but the poem has nothing to do with you.' Yomi says.

Manorism appears to have spawned from the seed of aneephya. The Aneephya toxin is a pseudoscientific concept Yomi is interested in, first introduced in his theatre production And Breathe released last summer. It describes a phenomena where generational trauma is generally triggered in the bloodstream of Black children from the age of nine, inducing fear. Aneephya is a vivid fear, present in both Black and non-Black people. In an interracial confrontation, aneephya is triggered and manifests as a defence mechanism, causing Black people to freeze, relinquishing control.

As he prepares for his Southbank show in early October of this year, Yomi admits he may have got his own concept wrong: that Aneephya is more of a revelation, an awakening.

'The Haunting of Dámilọ́lá'' speaks about the impact the passing of Dámilọ́lá Taylor had on Black youth, but in particular on Yomi as a young African child living in Peckham.

'When our parents thought of Britain, they thought the streets were paved with gold. But now? They were bringing their sons to die? The forcefield had been broken.'How could they go back home? The shame?

The forcefield he speaks of was both mental and spiritual. The book and its author have a choppy relationship with religion, portraying both its glories and flaws. The opening poem, 'Àdúrà Màmá Mi'is an ominous and embolding prayer, almost entirely in his native Yoruba. "Ìwọ àti ìdílé rẹ ò ní kú'kú òjijì" translates as 'You and your household will not die a sudden death''. However, this is exactly what happens. Later pieces find our protagonist to be envious of the poise and power of a pastor who visits his sick aunt, and another piece sees Dushane from TV drama Top Boy as being analogous to a flawed god. Yomi's first completed Manorism poems, 'A Street Sermon' I and II, generously employ religious and literary devices as conduits, bringing the streets to the masses and the masses to the streets.'In "Street Sermon", each of the lines are ten syllables. Dead white men's form flipped to the modern roads. I love the idea of being able to merge those worlds.' And he does so in riveting waves, through repetition, rhythm and ferocity.

' This book serves as a cultural wake-up to some degree.' Yomi sees himself - and the rest of us - as custodians of culture. As such, he can't hide the pressure he feels in delivering something 'worthy'.

'I don't know how people will relate to it, but I know it's come from a space that isn't false.'

He often geeks out about this responsibility. Manorism is half passion project, half duty-fulfilment, one of his greatest joys is being able to use a Paid in Full reference at this level (with the quote "What's the point of having soldiers if you can't use them?" from Rico, serving as an opening quote for 'A Street Sermon II').'It's just for the mandem,' he says with a grin. He was careful to ensure that Manorism can be appreciated at multiple levels of analysis, and still there are many such nuggets like this: open secrets ( if you know, you know), just for the mandem.

' [Manorism is] about vulnerability. How can I explore the situation of one Black man and his journey in relation to processing a death in the family?

Our people pride ourselves on proverbs centred around collectivism. Idioms such as "a village raises a child" are the prevailing narratives, but somehow we are some of the most secretive communities around. How? It's how Junior isn't aware that the family's matriarch, Big Mummy, has had cancer for two years ('You, Me and Big Mummy'). But now that he does, he is clueless as to what to do, even though as a man, he's always yearned to be relied upon.

The feminine figures of Big Mummy and his own mother are the unwavering constants. Big Mummy's worst nightmare is to be weak, and she conjures up supernatural strength during a terminal illness. There is no question about the significance of femininity in the familial structure; it's masculinity that is on trial here.

Men like Uncle D (Junior's stepfather) aren't given the grace to be vulnerable. ('What kind of man has just been crying since morning?' Junior's Mum asks, in 'December 3rd 21:30'). It's clear that a society that demands you be 'the bigger man' - irrespective of who is on the other side of the table - is one that sets men, particularly Black men, up for an insidious demise.

The thin-line between expression and projection, however, is often cro by Yomi (by his own admission) when it comes to his own son. Fatherhood is rife with obstacles, least of all the projection of his day-to-day on to his little ones. Bro, the hammer! Lloww treating everything like it's nails'is a seminal warning from a friend, in relation to an interaction with his son, in 'L'Appel du vide'.

These are the benefits of events like MANifest, Yomi says. They're an opportunity to see fatherhood through the lens of community.

On a personal note, the Nigerian-British poet is currently interested in furthering his accountability as a friend. This is the area I sensed he is most sensitive about in relation to Manorism but he gives me wider context. Arriving in England as a nine-year old, it was just him and his mum cramped into a small council flat. 'So letting go of a friend is a mad concept to me . . . Maybe friendship is something I didn't look into a lot in the book.'

He briefly describes the poem he didn't get to write. It was to do with brotherhood, a newly released Kendrick Lamar album and a weekend in Brighton. Friendship is a topic sacrosanct to our poet, so much so that he worries that his friends may suspect he is recording and releasing conversations under creative licence. 'They're used to me by now, anyway,' he jokes.

What's more, I suspect that he contemplates the new readers he may or may not make through the release of Manorism. 'I wonder if this speaks to Black men? Because nothing did for me [growing up].'

'There is victory in not giving in and responding to this type of violence.'

By now, the interview had flipped on me a little; he wanted to know what resonated with me. It is of chief importance that Manorism offers something that the mandem can identify with. More than a poetry collection, there are essays and journalistic segments - all elevated from an autobiographical foreground. 'Not everything is poetry, but I tried to make sure everything was written with a poetic stance. Experimentation. How can I work on my craft whilst developing new forms of speaking?'There truly is something for everyone, however small.

Throughout our conversation, I was picking up things from the collection that I hadn't prior, and Yomi was visibly conscious of it. Embarrassed, I promised to re-read the text, and continue excavating.

'I spent a long time looking into each poem,' explains Yomi. 'Am I geeking off too much? Am I being too "in depth"? But I have to be; there are hidden things that are not too linear. Where later am I gonna get an opportunity to do this other than my own work?'

Earlier in our discussion, we touched on victory and overcoming. Where is our victory? With more optimism than the first time of being asked, Yomi posits, 'There is victory in not giving in and responding to this type of violence.'

Other victories await the award-winning poet also. Ae has already started plotting his subsequent works, as well as multimedia adaptations of Manorism,for which we'll be keeping a keen eye out.

'I don't know how people are gonna take Manorism . . . it's a collection about manhood and what Black excellence means for different people.'

If Yomi's concerns are validated and the critics do talk about Manorism through the lens of race, at least they'll have to talk about the Black male experience in a way they never have before.

Just over a dozen Black men squeezed into an oval shape, in a restaurant-basement Streatham, south London. The occasion - MANIFEST - a therapeutic workshop for Black men of all ages. When I booked my ticket from Angola to London for the weekend, I didn't quite know what to expect, but, when you're interviewing Yomi Ṣode, there's no better place than that which feels like his hometurf.

I was on time; he must have been early. Except for a snappy introduction prior to the event, and some head nods and thumbs to check I was all right, Yomi remained unassuming. The event included an open circle segment so I kind of felt as though I had cheated by drawing an insight of his psyche just before our sit-down. After wandering for a bit - and teasing about whether Streatham was south-east or south-east London - we found a local restaurant to host our interview.

Naturally, I first had to ask how the idea of Manorism had come about.

' I was interested in how code-switching works in the body. Whether it be between elders, colleagues, friends . . .'

Without further prompting, Yomi walks me through how the etymology of the word 'Mannerism' sent him down a rabbit hole, stumbling into seventeenth-century art history, and he came across Caravaggio. 'Caravaggio was the bad boy of the art world,' he says, with no feigned admiration. Manorism isn't here to further venerate this archetype. Mannerism is an artistic style characterised by slight distortions in the human form - pioneered by the likes of Caravaggio. In the semantic sense, Caravaggio couldn't be less of a mannerist - Brash, violent and impulsive. Yomi threads tales of Caravaggio's exploits in parallel with the protagonist in the text, to expose the nature of the grace afforded to famed white men in Renaissance Europe, and to ask how even Black male celebrities. such as J Hus and AJ Tracey aren't afforded that same grace five centuries later. And, indeed, how much less grace is given an everyday Black man. This is best seen in 'A Plate of Artichokes', a personal standout in his Caravaggio series.

In two stanzas and a couple of breaths, we follow a split-screen sequence of Caravaggio and the Black male protagonist, both responding to being slighted at a restaurant: one man drew for a dagger; the other only "dreamt of violence" later that evening.

'I'm not tryna do that thing where we learn about racism through the lens of whiteness; these are still my experiences.'

'We are fortunate that we are here, but a lot of this book is about the misfortunes of being here.'

Yomi seems to be just as concerned about what the book isn't about as what it is about. 'This book isn't about racism,' he insists. Manorism also looks at fatherhood, family, masculinity, religion and death. In spite of this, Yomi retains a concealed anxiety that a literary reception will be hijacked with a barrage of reductionist takes.

And yet race, if not racism, is an omnipresent and unavoidable filter through which we receive the text.Through a range of narratives, Yomi presents the multiple ways in which racial dynamics unfold, both covertly and overtly. In 'A Green Tweed Coat', Yomi skillfully introduces a frequent conundrum at his office job, where " the tweed overcoat is on the floor again" and no one wants to talk about it. The fourth wall is only broken by the trainee who " has not yet learned to unsee it". Despite the coat having migrated to the centre of the office via unconscious trips and steps by colleagues, it still hasn't been seen.

The Black British experience is inherently dichotomous, and there is no way around this. Yomi isn't naive enough to disregard his own privileges. 'We are fortunate that we are here, but a lot of this book is about the misfortunes of being here.'

'Everyone's expecting me to say something, but this time I'm not gonna say something about it. But, in me choosing not to, am I complicit in the behaviour? And I am, says Yomi.

He jokes about his years of experience in dealing with passive and microaggressions, and I wonder that it's near impossible for [us] to be able to succeed without this ability to deal with aggressions. So where is the victory in this 'skill'? How do we reclaim our pride?
'Do we ever [reclaim our pride]? Where is the victory apart from a conundrum and gaslighting?'

Try as I might, I couldn't squeeze a happy ending out of Yomi.

But it's all too easy for these interracial aggressions to cloud the intraracial aggressions and injustices that Manorism also conveys. Pure, human injustices.

'About Hands: An Uncle' details the process in which a mother punishes her son for stealing 'About Hands: Somebody's Child' follows a young boy being tortured on the street for accidentally shoplifting.'"About Hands" Two ["Somebody's Child"] addresses what happens if "About Hands" One ["An Uncle"] doesn't happen.' The prequel is illustrated so viscerally you can feel each incision between the knuckles, a quasi-ceremonious affair, but by the time we confront the horrors of the sequel, the end justifies the means.

'When you're Black, the price of simply forgetting is fatal.'

And 'Black excellence' - success, and its celebration in the Black community - doesn't seem to be a viable solution either. In his piece 'Manorism I: On the Cultural Representation of Black Britain' Yomi documents how our modern-day Caravaggios, such as AJ Tracey, aren't safe. AJ Tracey is being demonized for the same lyrics, by the same community which thrust 'Alex from Glasto' into rarefied air . . . for his own lyrics! Alex from Glasto was apparently approached about record deals a few weeks later. Yomi told himself, 'Damn, they got me again, I fell for it." Unlike Alex, we aren't able to turn the cameras off on our reality.

He doubles down on this in his piece 'J Hus is Caught with a Knife, Samira Mighty Leaves Love Island &' 'I think of Killmonger taking the warhammer back to Wakanda, Stormzy calling Theresa May a paigon, or the Carters hiring the Louvre, cornrowing hair before the Mona Lisa,' That's Black Excellence. And somehow one of his oldest friends Yinka's idea of Black excellence has been reduced to the allowing and benefitting of his own fetishisation by white women. It truly is different things to different people.

'I wonder if there's a white woman that looks into Yinka and takes offence, but the poem has nothing to do with you.' Yomi says.

Manorism appears to have spawned from the seed of aneephya. The Aneephya toxin is a pseudoscientific concept Yomi is interested in, first introduced in his theatre production And Breathe released last summer. It describes a phenomena where generational trauma is generally triggered in the bloodstream of Black children from the age of nine, inducing fear. Aneephya is a vivid fear, present in both Black and non-Black people. In an interracial confrontation, aneephya is triggered and manifests as a defence mechanism, causing Black people to freeze, relinquishing control.

As he prepares for his Southbank show in early October of this year, Yomi admits he may have got his own concept wrong: that Aneephya is more of a revelation, an awakening.

'The Haunting of Dámilọ́lá'' speaks about the impact the passing of Dámilọ́lá Taylor had on Black youth, but in particular on Yomi as a young African child living in Peckham.

'When our parents thought of Britain, they thought the streets were paved with gold. But now? They were bringing their sons to die? The forcefield had been broken.'How could they go back home? The shame?

The forcefield he speaks of was both mental and spiritual. The book and its author have a choppy relationship with religion, portraying both its glories and flaws. The opening poem, 'Àdúrà Màmá Mi'is an ominous and embolding prayer, almost entirely in his native Yoruba. "Ìwọ àti ìdílé rẹ ò ní kú'kú òjijì" translates as 'You and your household will not die a sudden death''. However, this is exactly what happens. Later pieces find our protagonist to be envious of the poise and power of a pastor who visits his sick aunt, and another piece sees Dushane from TV drama Top Boy as being analogous to a flawed god. Yomi's first completed Manorism poems, 'A Street Sermon' I and II, generously employ religious and literary devices as conduits, bringing the streets to the masses and the masses to the streets.'In "Street Sermon", each of the lines are ten syllables. Dead white men's form flipped to the modern roads. I love the idea of being able to merge those worlds.' And he does so in riveting waves, through repetition, rhythm and ferocity.

' This book serves as a cultural wake-up to some degree.' Yomi sees himself - and the rest of us - as custodians of culture. As such, he can't hide the pressure he feels in delivering something 'worthy'.

'I don't know how people will relate to it, but I know it's come from a space that isn't false.'

He often geeks out about this responsibility. Manorism is half passion project, half duty-fulfilment, one of his greatest joys is being able to use a Paid in Full reference at this level (with the quote "What's the point of having soldiers if you can't use them?" from Rico, serving as an opening quote for 'A Street Sermon II').'It's just for the mandem,' he says with a grin. He was careful to ensure that Manorism can be appreciated at multiple levels of analysis, and still there are many such nuggets like this: open secrets ( if you know, you know), just for the mandem.

' [Manorism is] about vulnerability. How can I explore the situation of one Black man and his journey in relation to processing a death in the family?

Our people pride ourselves on proverbs centred around collectivism. Idioms such as "a village raises a child" are the prevailing narratives, but somehow we are some of the most secretive communities around. How? It's how Junior isn't aware that the family's matriarch, Big Mummy, has had cancer for two years ('You, Me and Big Mummy'). But now that he does, he is clueless as to what to do, even though as a man, he's always yearned to be relied upon.

The feminine figures of Big Mummy and his own mother are the unwavering constants. Big Mummy's worst nightmare is to be weak, and she conjures up supernatural strength during a terminal illness. There is no question about the significance of femininity in the familial structure; it's masculinity that is on trial here.

Men like Uncle D (Junior's stepfather) aren't given the grace to be vulnerable. ('What kind of man has just been crying since morning?' Junior's Mum asks, in 'December 3rd 21:30'). It's clear that a society that demands you be 'the bigger man' - irrespective of who is on the other side of the table - is one that sets men, particularly Black men, up for an insidious demise.

The thin-line between expression and projection, however, is often cro by Yomi (by his own admission) when it comes to his own son. Fatherhood is rife with obstacles, least of all the projection of his day-to-day on to his little ones. Bro, the hammer! Lloww treating everything like it's nails'is a seminal warning from a friend, in relation to an interaction with his son, in 'L'Appel du vide'.

These are the benefits of events like MANifest, Yomi says. They're an opportunity to see fatherhood through the lens of community.

On a personal note, the Nigerian-British poet is currently interested in furthering his accountability as a friend. This is the area I sensed he is most sensitive about in relation to Manorism but he gives me wider context. Arriving in England as a nine-year old, it was just him and his mum cramped into a small council flat. 'So letting go of a friend is a mad concept to me . . . Maybe friendship is something I didn't look into a lot in the book.'

He briefly describes the poem he didn't get to write. It was to do with brotherhood, a newly released Kendrick Lamar album and a weekend in Brighton. Friendship is a topic sacrosanct to our poet, so much so that he worries that his friends may suspect he is recording and releasing conversations under creative licence. 'They're used to me by now, anyway,' he jokes.

What's more, I suspect that he contemplates the new readers he may or may not make through the release of Manorism. 'I wonder if this speaks to Black men? Because nothing did for me [growing up].'

'There is victory in not giving in and responding to this type of violence.'

By now, the interview had flipped on me a little; he wanted to know what resonated with me. It is of chief importance that Manorism offers something that the mandem can identify with. More than a poetry collection, there are essays and journalistic segments - all elevated from an autobiographical foreground. 'Not everything is poetry, but I tried to make sure everything was written with a poetic stance. Experimentation. How can I work on my craft whilst developing new forms of speaking?'There truly is something for everyone, however small.

Throughout our conversation, I was picking up things from the collection that I hadn't prior, and Yomi was visibly conscious of it. Embarrassed, I promised to re-read the text, and continue excavating.

'I spent a long time looking into each poem,' explains Yomi. 'Am I geeking off too much? Am I being too "in depth"? But I have to be; there are hidden things that are not too linear. Where later am I gonna get an opportunity to do this other than my own work?'

Earlier in our discussion, we touched on victory and overcoming. Where is our victory? With more optimism than the first time of being asked, Yomi posits, 'There is victory in not giving in and responding to this type of violence.'

Other victories await the award-winning poet also. Ae has already started plotting his subsequent works, as well as multimedia adaptations of Manorism,for which we'll be keeping a keen eye out.

'I don't know how people are gonna take Manorism . . . it's a collection about manhood and what Black excellence means for different people.'

If Yomi's concerns are validated and the critics do talk about Manorism through the lens of race, at least they'll have to talk about the Black male experience in a way they never have before.

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'A Cultural Wake-Up' An Interview with Yomi Sode - Bad Form

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Just over a dozen Black men squeezed into an oval shape, in a restaurant-basement Streatham, south London. The occasion - MANIFEST - a therapeutic workshop for Black men of all ages.

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Show caption
Report includes accounts of how young women are often excluded after having experienced unaddressed sexual harassment. Photograph: Peter Lopeman/Alamy

Some Black and minority ethnic girls in England are more than twice as likely to be excluded from school as their white counterparts, according to a report.

Equality campaigners have raised the alarm at the findings, which show that the number of girls excluded from education is growing at a significantly higher rate than boys.

Data uncovered by Agenda, an alliance of more than 50 charities campaigning for the most excluded women and girls, through a freedom of information request to the Department for Education, shows that black Caribbean girls were permanently excluded from school at a rate double that of white British girls during the academic year 2019-20, with this tripling for mixed white and Caribbean girls.

During the same time period, girls from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities faced rates of permanent exclusion that were four times higher than those of white British girls.

While boys continue to face higher rates of exclusion overall, the report notes that the number of girls excluded is increasing, with permanent exclusions of girls rising by 66% over the last five years, compared with a 32% increase among boys during the same time period.

The figures have led to calls for the Department for Education to routinely publish data relating to school exclusions broken down by sex and ethnicity, and take action on the racial disparities found.

The report also includes first-hand accounts of how girls and young women are often excluded from education after having experienced unaddressed sexual harassment and abuse, poor mental health, and racism. The report suggests negative stereotypes attached to black girls and young women, and those from minority ethnic backgrounds, play a critical role in their exclusion.

Marie, 23, told Agenda that a sexual image was shared without her consent when she was at school. She said: "That was just like the start of the hell ... From there, I got excluded a few times, just for little things, like setting off the alarm and bunking and stuff like that. I just felt like I gained a stereotype. Like 'loud, black girl', and that really is not tolerated.

"Instead of being asked, 'What's going on ... Are you OK?' They asked me about school counselling once ... It was a while after ... I didn't engage with it."

Jemima Olchawski, the CEO of Agenda, said: "Black and minoritised girls and young women tell us that they aren't being listened to and that racist stereotypes mean their needs are being ignored. With the long-term harms associated with exclusion well established, this isn't a trend we can allow to continue.

"We've seen a once-in-a-generation crisis and the government's recovery plan needs to reflect the scale of the challenge. It must address the ways racial inequalities contribute to school exclusions for Black and minoritised girls and invest in specialist services that are able to address the impact of the trauma and disadvantage they've experienced."

A staff member at an alternative provision school said: "I think that many girls are struggling in silence and can often slip through the net more than boys. In my experience, sometimes boys are more likely to say they're being caught up in something or that they're doing something that they shouldn't be, but this doesn't happen so much with girls. They need that support network in place from the outset and often that's not there which can make them more vulnerable to being at risk of exclusion."

A Department for Education spokesperson said: "We back headteachers to suspend or permanently exclude pupils where this helps maintain calm classrooms that bring out the best in every child, but this should only be used as a last resort. We expect staff to consider any underlying causes of poor behaviour before making this decision.

"We know children and young people from some backgrounds are more likely to be excluded - that's why we are working to deliver significantly improved outcomes for children and young people in alternative provision, who are most at risk of permanent exclusion."

* The headline of this article was amended on 23 September 2021 to clarify that, as the article itself says, it is Black Caribbean girls who are twice as likely to be excluded from schools as white girls; an earlier version had referred only to "Black girls".
Exclusions

Data also shows that school exclusions for girls are growing at higher rate than for boys

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Black Caribbean girls in England 'twice as likely to be excluded from schools as white girls'

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Some Black and minority ethnic girls in England are more than twice as likely to be excluded from school as their white counterparts, according to a report. Equality campaigners have raised the alarm at the findings, which show that the number of girls excluded from education is growing at a significantly higher rate than boys.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Navigating life as a Black, neurodivergent woman is complicated. Growing up, these parts of my identity presented a trifecta of unique challenges, some of which follow me to this day. Others, I've been able to overcome in my journey toward understanding and accepting my neurodiversity - and helping others accept theirs.

I was luckier than most, blessed with an early diagnosis of inattentive ADHD in the First Grade after my parents and teachers voiced major concerns about my distractibility and impulsivity. My diagnosis was an important starting point, but it was no silver bullet. If anything, it felt like my "problematic" behaviors were simply assigned a different name.

The Reality of Being a Black Girl with ADHD

Even with a diagnosis, I never felt like teachers, coaches, and other adults in my life fully understood me. (Except for my supportive parents - something so many go without.) Many of my teachers made no attempts to hide their biases, and often saw me as an impulsive, misbehaving student rather than one struggling with symptoms of a condition.

Day in and day out, I wasn't given the space to fully explore my identity and understand myself, ADHD and all. Instead, society dished out shame, accused me of being lazy, and provided no support for a neurodivergent mind like mine.

This is, unfortunately, an all-too-common reality for young Black girls with ADHD in this country - especially those who go undiagnosed.
[Read: Why ADHD Is Different for People of Color]
ADHD doesn't discriminate by gender or race. Yet boys are more likely than girls to receive a formal diagnosis of ADHD, and white children are more likely than Black children to receive an ADHD diagnosis. These gaps stem from the antiquated, gendered, and racist stereotypes that surround perceptions of ADHD. As a result, Black girls and women experience disproportionate delays in symptom identification and treatment, which can cause a host of other issues, like anxiety and low self-esteem.

Finding a Sense of Belonging

Though I had my diagnosis, I lacked a sense of community for many, many years. I needed peers and allies who truly understood me and saw my ADHD for the superpower it can be, rather than a deficit or disability.

I finally found this all-important, life-changing sense of belonging during my junior year at Radford University, after begrudgingly following my mom's advice to join a club. I joined Eye to Eye, a community built by and for people who learn differently, like me. I couldn't believe that such a community existed. My self-confidence and self-love blossomed. By my senior year, I was in charge of the university's entire chapter, serving as a mentor to younger students with learning differences.

A Movement Underway

After graduating from college, I joined Eye to Eye's team, where I've dedicated my professional career to bringing after-school mentorship programs - and a sense of community and acceptance - to young people who are just like me.
[Read: 5 Truths About the Beauty of Neurodiversity That I Had to Live to Learn]
Eye to Eye and other peer-to-peer mentorship programs are part of a turning tide - a widescale movement that highlights neurodiversity and acceptance of all people. Recently, Eye to Eye organized a conference at the University of Denver, where hundreds of neurodiverse youth discussed their lived experiences, the state of education for people with learning differences, and future directions for policymakers.

The signs of progress are widespread. Political leaders like New York City Mayor Eric Adams and California Governor Gavin Newsom have leaned into their experiences as people who learn differently and unveiled plans to better support neurodiverse youth in their states. Artists like Beyoncé and Lizzo have adjusted their art in the name of inclusivity and respect. And social media platforms such as LinkedIn have altered their features to celebrate the benefits neurodiverse employees bring to the workplace.

I am so proud to be a part of the team at the helm of this movement. More importantly, these signs of change give me so much hope that young, Black, neurodivergent girls today won't have to go through what I did just to discover their amazing selves.

Neurodiversity Movement: Next Steps

SUPPORT ADDITUDE
Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

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"I am a Neurodivergent Black Woman - and I am Filled with Hope."

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Navigating life as a Black, neurodivergent woman is complicated. Growing up, these parts of my identity presented a trifecta of unique challenges, some of which follow me to this day. Others, I've been able to overcome in my journey toward understanding and accepting my neurodiversity - and helping others accept theirs.

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Listen to this episode from ADHD Babes: The Podcast on Spotify. Today's episode focuses on the perception of Blackness. With elements of the ADHD diagnostic criteria crossing over with stereotypes used to describe people of colour. Things like "You're so loud" or "You're being defensive".

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UK Black History Month: Let's Talk about Race with John Amaechi

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A self-described "black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet," Audre Lorde dedicated both her life and her creative talent to confronting and addressing injustices of racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia. Lorde was born in New York City to West Indian immigrant parents. She attended Catholic schools before graduating from Hunter High School and published her first poem in Seventeen magazine while still a student there. Of her poetic beginnings Lorde commented in Black Women Writers: "I used to speak in poetry. I would read poems, and I would memorize them. People would say, well what do you think, Audre. What happened to you yesterday? And I would recite a poem and somewhere in that poem would be a line or a feeling I would be sharing. In other words, I literally communicated through poetry. And when I couldn't find the poems to express the things I was feeling, that's what started me writing poetry, and that was when I was twelve or thirteen."

Lorde earned her BA from Hunter College and MLS from Columbia University. She was a librarian in the New York public schools throughout the 1960s. She had two children with her husband, Edwin Rollins, a white, gay man, before they divorced in 1970. In 1972, Lorde met her long-time partner, Frances Clayton. She also began teaching as poet-in-residence at Tougaloo College. Her experiences with teaching and pedagogy-as well as her place as a Black, queer woman in white academia-went on to inform her life and work. Indeed, Lorde's contributions to feminist theory, critical race studies, and queer theory intertwine her personal experiences with broader political aims. Lorde articulated early on the intersections of race, class, and gender in canonical essays such as "The Master's Tools Will Not Dismantle the Master's House."

Lorde's early collections of poetry include The First Cities (1968), Cables to Rage (1970), and From a Land Where Other People Live (1972), which was nominated for a National Book Award. Later works, including New York Head Shop and Museum (1974), Coal (1976), and The Black Unicorn (1978), included powerful poems of protest. "I have a duty," Lorde once stated, "to speak the truth as I see it and to share not just my triumphs, not just the things that felt good, but the pain, the intense, often unmitigating pain." Lorde's later poems were often assembled from personal journals. Explaining the genesis of "Power," a poem about the police shooting of a ten-year-old black child, Lorde discussed her feelings when she learned that the officer involved had been acquitted: "A kind of fury rose up in me; the sky turned red. I felt so sick. I felt as if I would drive this car into a wall, into the next person I saw. So I pulled over. I took out my journal just to air some of my fury, to get it out of my fingertips. Those expressed feelings are that poem."

Her poetry, and "indeed all of her writing," according to contributor Joan Martin in Black Women Writers (1950-1980): A Critical Evaluation, "rings with passion, sincerity, perception, and depth of feeling." Concerned with modern society's tendency to categorize groups of people, Lorde fought the marginalization of such categories as "lesbian" and "black woman." She was central to many liberation movements and activist circles, including second-wave feminism, civil rights and Black cultural movements, and struggles for LGBTQ equality. In particular, Lorde's poetry is known for the power of its call for social and racial justice, as well as its depictions of queer experience and sexuality. As she told interviewer Charles H. Rowell in Callaloo: "My sexuality is part and parcel of who I am, and my poetry comes from the intersection of me and my worlds... [White, arch-conservative senator] Jesse Helms's objection to my work is not about obscenity ... or even about sex. It is about revolution and change."

Lorde was a noted prose writer as well as poet. Her account of her struggle to overcome breast cancer and mastectomy, The Cancer Journals (1980), is regarded as a major work of illness narrative. In The Cancer Journals, Lorde confronts the possibility of death. Recounting this personal transformation led Lorde to address the silence surrounding cancer, illness, and the lived experience of women. For example, Lorde explained her decision not to wear a prosthesis after undergoing a mastectomy in the Journals: "Prosthesis offers the empty comfort of 'Nobody will know the difference.' But it is that very difference which I wish to affirm, because I have lived it, and survived it, and wish to share that strength with other women. If we are to translate the silence surrounding breast cancer into language and action against this scourge, then the first step is that women with mastectomies must become visible to each other."

Lorde's 1982 novel, Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, was described by its publishers as a "biomythography, combining elements of history, biography and myth." Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches (1984) collected Lorde's nonfiction prose and has become a canonical text in Black studies, women's studies, and queer theory. Another collection of essays, A Burst of Light (1988), won the National Book Award. The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde was published in 1997.

In 1981 Lorde and fellow writers Cherríe Moraga and Barbara Smith founded Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press, which was dedicated to furthering the writings of black feminists. Lorde would also become increasingly concerned over the plight of black women in South Africa under apartheid, creating Sisterhood in Support of Sisters in South Africa and remaining an active voice on behalf of these women throughout the remainder of her life. Lorde addressed her concerns to not only the United States but the world, encouraging a celebration of the differences that society instead used as tools of isolation. As Allison Kimmich noted in Feminist Writers, "Throughout all of Audre Lorde's writing, both nonfiction and fiction, a single theme surfaces repeatedly. The black lesbian feminist poet activist reminds her readers that they ignore differences among people at their peril ... Instead, Lorde suggests, differences in race or class must serve as a 'reason for celebration and growth.'"

Lorde's honors and awards included a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. A professor of English at John Jay College and Hunter College, Lorde was poet laureate of New York from 1991-1992. Warrior Poet (2006), by Alexis De Veaux, is the first full-length biography of Audre Lorde.

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A self-described "black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet," Audre Lorde dedicated both her life and her creative talent to confronting and addressing injustices of racism, sexism, classism, and homophobia. Lorde was born in New York City to West Indian immigrant parents. She attended Catholic schools...

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“The Uses of Anger” for BIPOC Poets by Cecilia… | Poetry Foundation

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As a poet and teaching artist, my goal is to create more communal spaces of storytelling and social justice for BIPOC folks. I welcome poets of all levels to my...

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Black Mermaids in Books: A Booklist for Little Readers, Teens, and Adults (+ Video)

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Black mermaids aren’t new, but because they haven’t been represented widely in the books and other media, they can seem odd to some. In this list, you’ll find Black mermaids in children’s books, middle grade books, and in young adult books (and up). The subject matter is diverse and ranges from ligh…

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Kit de Waal on her memoir Without Warning and Only Sometimes

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Real talk by women of colour - at times light, at times serious, but always honest #siscollective.

Join BBC presenters Jessie Aru-Phillips, Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley.

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Real talk by women of colour - at times light, at times serious, but always honest #siscollective. Join BBC presenters Jessie Aru-Phillips, Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley.

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Children's Books by Black Writers and Illustrators

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Children's Books by Black Writers and Illustrators

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1. Mary Seacole was born Mary Jane Grant on 23 November 1805 in Kingston, Jamaica. Her mother was Jamaican and a doctress, and her father was Scottish and an officer in the British Army.

2. Jamaica was seized by the British in 1655, so by the time Mary was born, most Jamaicans worked as slaves for their British masters. However, like her mother, Mary was born free.

3. As well as being a doctress - a female doctor who can cure illnesses with local herbs and medicines - Mary was also a businesswoman and set up hotels and shops throughout her life.

4. Mary first travelled to England in 1821 when she was just 16 years old! She returned briefly to Jamaica to gather large amounts of jams and pickles to sell in England so she could get by for a couple of years.

5. In the 1800s, it was considered unusual for a woman to travel alone. However, Mary was very independent and ended up writing a book about all her solo travels called Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands. This became the first-ever autobiography published by a free black woman in the British empire.

6. In 1836, Mary married Edwin Horatio Hamilton Seacole, a white British merchant from Prittlewell, Essex. Edwin was the godson of Admiral Nelson! He sadly passed away in 1844 and despite proposals from other men, Mary never remarried.

'It was from my own powers, and not at all from necessity, that I remained an unprotected female.'

7. An outbreak of cholera - a contagious disease that causes vomiting, cramps and diarrhoea - hit Jamaica in 1850. Mary studied the disease, and with the help of a military doctor learned a lot about how to treat those infected. She later treated a terrible epidemic of cholera in Cruces on the Isthmus of Panama, and caught a mild case of it herself!

8. Although Mary was a very popular doctress she sadly still experienced racism. At one of her goodbye parties (she left Cruces to travel to Gorgona Island in 1852) a man made a speech to thank Mary for helping treat those who had been sick but exclaimed that it was a shame her skin wasn't white as it would make her more acceptable. Mary could not allow this kind of prejudice to be ignored - so she responded that her skin colour made no difference to all the work she had done and that even if her skin had been darker, 'I should have been just as happy and just as useful, and as much respected by those whose respect I value.'

9. The Crimean War broke out in October 1853 and by the following year, Mary had arrived in London to offer her skills as a nurse. Despite all her glowing references from senior officials, Mary was told that all the nursing positions had been filled and that she would not be chosen even if a vacancy came up. But Mary was determined to help the soldiers, so she paid her own way to the Crimeawith her friend Thomas Day. They opened the British Hotel - a hotel and store - two miles from where the soldiers were stationed in Balaklava, Crimea.

10. During her journey to Crimea, Mary was put up for the night in Florence Nightingale's hospital in Scutari, Turkey. Florence even had breakfast sent to Mary's room the following morning!

11. As well as treating soldiers at her hotel in Crimea, Mary would also visit the battlefront on her horse; taking sandwiches, drinks, bandages and medicines with her. But it was a dangerous thing to do. Mary once suffered a dislocated thumb after she threw herself on the ground to avoid gunfire!

12. Mary treated British, French and Sardinian soldiers - who were all allies - but she also tended to Russian soldiers, even though they were technically the enemy.

13. Despite being so well-loved, Mary was forgotten about in history after her death in 1881. It was only in 1980 that her story was rediscovered by historians.

14. A statue of Mary Seacole sits outside St Thomas' Hospital in London and is believed to be the first in the UK to honour a black woman.

More from the Extraordinary Lives series

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14 extraordinary facts about Mary Seacole

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Mary Seacole is most well known for her brave work during The Crimean War but did you know she was also an intrepid traveller? Here are some of our favourite facts about this pioneering nurse and businesswoman.

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14 wonderful children's books by Black authors and illustrators

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From tales about brave kids and great friendships to unforgettable memoirs and true stories, we've rounded up our favourite books by black children's authors and illustrators.

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Led by our Race Equality Policy and Action Plan, BERA has a number of activities which are specifically concerned with tackling racial discrimination within education. This policy commits us to...

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bell hooks and picture books

By Monica C. Thu, December 16, 2021

bell hooks and child at book signing. Image credit The Washington Post/Getty Images

You may know bell hooks for her innovative and tranformative works in literature, poetry, and feminist studies.

Did you know she also wrote picture books?

These titles are not to be missed!

Her Mama calls her Girlpie-a sweet treat, homemade with love. And when Girlpie makes a mistake, the love of her mother and father lets her pick up the pieces and make everything right again.

Celebrates the joy and beauty of nappy hair. Nominated for an NAACP Image Award, here is a buoyantly fun read aloud brimming with playful and powerful affirmations.

Celebrates being Bold, All Bliss Boy, All Bad Boy Beast, Boy running, Boy Jumping, Boy Sitting Down, and being in Love With Being a Boy.

ebook available from Overdrive

Rhythmic text exposes a bad mood on the prowl and advises the reader not to hide, but to let those feelings be.

ebook available from Overdrive

Race matters, but what's most important is who we are on the inside. Looking beyond skin, going straight to the heart, we find in each other the treasures stored down deep. Learning to cherish those treasures, to be all we imagine ourselves to be, makes us free. A new edition of this book is schedule to be published in August 2022!

We are sorry to have lost a legendary poet and scholar, as well as amazing picture book writer!

Be sure to check our catalog and Overdrive Kids eReading Room, for these titles and many more being added!

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By Monica C. Thu, December 16, 2021 bell hooks and child at book signing. Image credit The Washington Post/Getty Images You may know bell hooks for her innovative and tranformative works in literature, poetry, and feminist studies. Did you know she also wrote picture books? These titles are not to be missed!

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Francesca Sobande

Edited by Veronica Vivi

Art by Olivia Twist: http://www.yesoliviatwist.com/

For some, the work of bell hooks needs no introduction. It may have represented their entry into Black feminist media and cultural critique, or the starting point of their understanding of the intersections of sexism and racism. I will always remember when I first came across the writings of hooks. I found such excitement in reading a distinctly Black feminist voice that is rarely found in university curricula. As I read hooks' engaging analysis of media and consumer culture, I thought to myself "I never knew that academic writing could be like this!".

Amongst the extensive list of hooks' books are, Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism (1981), Black Looks: Race and Representation (1992), Reel to Real: Race, Sex and Class at the Movies (1996), and Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom (1994). During my time as an undergraduate student, the necessary words of Black feminist scholars and critical thinkers, such as hooks, seemed frustratingly absent. With this in mind I write this short essay, as a Black (and mixed) woman, about the beauty and insight to be found in hooks' memory-infused book Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood (1997) as well as Zami: A New Spelling of My Name (1982) by Audre Lorde.

I discovered Bone Black during my PhD, which focused on the media representation and experiences of Black women in Britain. This research process expanded my awareness of how many Black feminist writers, artists, and activists are missing and erased from university curricula. I scoured the internet for Black feminist resources which my undergraduate experience had not provided. Having savoured hooks' work on race, representation, and the spectator gaze of Black women, I was intrigued by the idea of reading a book that focused on her childhood. I ordered Bone Black and impatiently waited for its arrival.

When the book finally came through the post, I unpacked it and gazed upon the red and black cover that framed a black and white photograph of a small young Black girl. I couldn't remember the last time I had seen a book adorned with a photo depicting an everyday moment of Black girlhood. Her hair reminded me of mine as a child. When was this picture taken? What was this little girl thinking? Before I had even opened the book, I knew that its content would envelop my thoughts.

Bone Black is one of those books that stays with you. It is rooted in hooks' memories and, as such, has an intimate and dreamlike quality which brings each paragraph to life. As hooks states, this book "is not an ordinary tale. It is the story of girlhood rebellion, of my struggle to create self and identity distinct from and yet inclusive of the world around me" (hooks, Bone Black xi). In learning about the life of hooks as a young child experiencing Southern Black culture, the reader is taken on a journey of self-reflection as they explore "the inner life of a girl inventing herself - creating the foundation of self-hood and identity that will ultimately lead to the fulfilment of her true identity-becoming a writer" (hooks, Bone Black xi). There is an empowering sense of self-actualisation underpinning this book.

Bone Black touches on a broad spectrum of themes, such as issues concerning colourism. Colourism relates to how light-skinned Black women are societally favoured in comparison to dark-skinned Black women, who bear the brunt of oppression at the intersection of racism and sexism. Rightfully so, hooks does not shy away from exploring similarities and differences between the lives of Black women, whose experiences have often been reduced to oppressive stereotypes throughout history.

I read hooks' Bone Black and Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lordein close succession. Navigating through their brilliant works transported me into a world of memoirs of Black women's childhoods. While these books convey memories filled with the joy that can pepper some childhoods, they do not steer away from issues including angst and confusion, religious influences, sexual exploration, traumatic education experiences, as well as the abusive power that is all too readily wielded over young Black girls. Just as hooks paints a vibrant picture of her childhood, so too does Lorde. Through Zami, Lorde also captures the difficulties involved in the lives of Black girls who do not fit the prescribed patriarchal and heteronormative mould they are expected to.

Writing about both hooks and Lorde in this essay seemed essential as the decolonisation of curricula is dependent on a range of resources extending far beyond the text of one writer. Both Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood and Zami: A New Spelling of My Name are part of a wider canon of literature on Black girlhood and the memoirs of Black feminist writers-particularly those of Black lesbian activists. This literature offers much to a range of disciplines, including Gender and Sexuality Studies, Women's Studies, Education Studies, Sociology, Media and Cultural Studies, Child and Youth Studies, and English Literature. These disciplines would benefit from embracing further work concerning the lives of Black women, especially written in their own words. I believe the writing and self-reflective spirit of hooks and Lorde can facilitate the development of learning and teaching environments where the contribution of Black women plays a driving role rather than simply being acknowledged.
Works cited
hooks, bell. Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism. South End Press, 1981.

-. Black Looks: Race and Representation. South End Press, 1992.

-. Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Feminism. Routledge, 1994.

-. Reel to Real: Race, Sex and Class at the Movies. Routledge, 1996.

-. Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood. Henry Holt and Company, 1997.

Lorde, Audre. Zami: A New Spelling of My Name. Crossing Press, 1982.
About the author
Dr. Francesca Sobande is a Lecturer in Marketing and Advertising (Edge Hill University). Her research focuses on issues regarding identity, ideology, and inequality. In particular, her work explores the experiences of Black women, and the intersections of racism and sexism amidst digital, media, and marketplace settings.

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Black Girlhood in 'Bone Black' by bell hooks, and 'Zami' by Audre Lorde

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Francesca Sobande Edited by Veronica Vivi Art by Olivia Twist: http://www.yesoliviatwist.com/ For some, the work of bell hooks needs no introduction. It may have represented their entry into Black feminist media and cultural critique, or the starting point of their understanding of the intersections of sexism and racism.

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Black Female Voices: Who is Listening - A public dialogue between bell hooks + Melissa Harris-Perry

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Macpherson: What Happened Next - BBC Sounds

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Catch up on your favourite BBC radio show from your favourite DJ right here, whenever you like. Listen without limits with BBC Sounds.

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Listen to this episode from Who We Be TALKS_ on Spotify. As part of the celebration of Black History Month in the UK, this episode of Who We Be Talks_ focuses on 4 key individuals who play a role in defining the Black British Experience in the UK.

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Britain's first female black headteacher

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Listen to this episode from Witness History: Black history on Spotify. Yvonne Conolly was appointed head of Ringcross Primary school in North London in 1969. She had moved to the UK from Jamaica just a few years earlier and quickly worked her way up the teaching profession.

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BAFTA-winning documentary series that follows a British school as it helps its students uncover and eradicate hidden racial biases, exploring how this can affect us all and what we can do to tackle it

No episode available to watch on demand

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BAFTA-winning documentary series that follows a British school as it helps its students uncover and eradicate hidden racial biases, exploring how this can affect us all and what we can do to tackle it No episode available to watch on demand

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Listen to this episode from Black History Bites on Spotify. At BLAM we discuss the importance of Critical Race Theory

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Beyond Books: Liz Pemberton in conversation with Derek Owusu

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Explore the histories of Black people in Britain

This Black History Month, whether you are a student, a teacher, or just interested in exploring the history of Black people in Britain and beyond, we invite you to unpack Black history with us.

The Black Lives Matter movement in the United States sent ripples across the Atlantic that became a wave, flowing into the tide of burgeoning Black activism in the UK. These new beginnings will wash over Britain, informing its confrontations with its colonial past, and shaping its reckonings with the future, for generations to come.

Perhaps louder than anywhere, the call for lasting change resonates across education. What we teach and learn today decides the course of the future.

Do you know about Black history in Britain? From learning about the lives of Black Tudors to exploring the colonial policies of Britain in the Caribbean, there's a wealth of pedagogical and historical resources here for you to enjoy.

For teachers educating the next generations, we have courses to train you in embedding Black history in the national curriculum and in school syllabuses.

These online history, teaching, and tech courses will inspire you to rethink how we teach history in classrooms today, as well as question what you thought you knew about the history of Black Britain.

Embedding Black history in the UK curriculum

FutureLearn's mission is to transform access to education - which means we're dedicated to addressing inequality in education all year round, not solely for one month.

Our collection of courses helps you reimagine the future of the teaching of Black stories in Britain - from confronting the racial imbalance in the school curriculum to 'decolonising' universities.

Learning about Black histories helps us practically reimagine Black futures. Black history is British history - as these fascinating and inspiring courses show - and Britain's future, more than ever in its past, will be guided by the educating of a nation on the identity, influence, achievements and struggles of Black Britons.

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Black History Month - Online History and Teaching Courses - FutureLearn

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This Black History Month, whether you are a student, a teacher, or just interested in exploring the history of Black people in Britain and beyond, we invite you to unpack Black history with us. The Black Lives Matter movement in the United States sent ripples across the Atlantic that became a wave, flowing into the tide of burgeoning Black activism in the UK.

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Taking Up Space: The Black Girl's Manifesto for Change

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Taking Up Space: The Black Girl's Manifesto for Change : Kwakye, Chelsea, Ogunbiyi, Ore: Amazon.co.uk: Books

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Akala | Full Address and Q&A | Oxford Union

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GARRETT MORGAN (Traffic Light Inventor) - Black History Month

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Listen to Dope Black Dads Podcast on Spotify.

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Michael Holding says racial 'brainwashing' must end with black people growing up feeling 'lesser'

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Sky Sports Cricket's Michael Holding has passionately dissected the "brainwashing" that he says is to blame for the racial issues that remain rife to this day.

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Hair Love | Oscar®-Winning Short Film (Full) | Sony Pictures Animation

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Supporting inclusive reading in schools.

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This framework was developed through a research project commissioned by the NEU and supported by internal funding from Newcastle University. The project was led by Professor Heather J Smith (PI, Newcastle University) and Professor Vini Lander (Co-I, Leeds Beckett University) with research support provided by Marsha Garratt. The research project undertook a global literature review into anti-racism in teacher education which informed the development of a survey open to all initial teacher education providers in England. The survey was shared via UCET and NASBTT to capture all University and school centred providers. We worked with partners (Centre of Race Education and Decoloniality; Show Racism the Red Card; Universities of Sanctuary; BAME Ed Network; NEU; NALDIC) as consultors, co-producers and disseminators. The framework was devised in light of the findings of the global literature review and survey analysis.

Why do we need a framework for anti-racism in ITE/T?

We began this project to generate new data and evidence for the publication of a freely available and widely disseminated, trusted, accessible and research-informed anti-racism framework for Initial Teacher Education/Training (such as PGCE and SCITT courses) in England. We understood this to be of vital importance to education more broadly given that reference to anti-racism is absent in current policy and hence there is no current guidance for ITE/T providers on anti-racism in ITE/T. This has led to a situation in which the most recent DfE survey, mirroring previous results, revealed that only 53% of newly qualified teachers, six months into their first post, felt well prepared to teach pupils "from all ethnic backgrounds" [sic] (53%) and only 39% felt well prepared to teach pupils with English as an additional language.

Framework Documents

The following documents open directly from within the anti-racism framework, but are here also for ease of access:
Global Literature Review Global Literature Chart - Themes by Country Survey Analysis Anti Racism Framework Complete Part 1 Anti Racism Framework Complete Part 2 Part 1 and Part 2 must be saved together in the same folder then extracted.
The following resources are produced by ITE/T colleagues who responded to the survey. These are also accessible directly from within the anti-racism framework.
Resource 1 Resource 2 Example Practice Resource 3 Laddering Activity

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This framework was developed through a research project commissioned by the NEU and supported by internal funding from Newcastle University. The project was led by Professor Heather J Smith (PI, Newcastle University) and Professor Vini Lander (Co-I, Leeds Beckett University) with research support provided by Marsha Garratt.

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Roy Hackett was a civil rights hero – everyone in Britain should know his name | Olivette Otele

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The activist who led the groundbreaking 1960s Bristol bus boycott embodied the spirit of radical resilience and hope, says Olivette Otele of Soas University of London

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The sector has rallied behind early years expert and trainer Liz Pemberton, after The Telegraph published what many consider to be a highly personal attack about her company The Black Nursery Manager, under the headline 'Councils hire "Maoist" consultants to "decolonise minds" of nursery school children.'

The Telegraph article attacked Pemberton's anti-racist training and views, citing references made on social media regarding 'white privilege'.

It also highlighted that her training was paid for by Labour-run councils and called for her to be 'defunded'.

Nursery World has subsequently learnt that Pemberton has also worked with other local authorities that are not under Labour control, including delivering a keynote speech in March for an early years celebration event for Buckinghamshire Council, which is held by the Conservatives.

Pemberton is a widely respected early years expert and a regular contributor to Nursery World, most recently writing a series on anti-racist leadership, which sets out how early years leaders can instil anti-racist practice.

She was also a speaker at last week's Nursery World Show.

The early years sector has shown huge support for Pemberton since the article was published by The Telegraph online at the weekend.

Pemberton has said her mission is to promote inclusive practice in the early years (under under-fives) education sector, with a particular focus on how race, culture and ethnicity should be considered in this practice.

Pemberton told Nursery World, 'You can imagine my surprise then when I received an email out of the blue requesting a right-of-reply from a Telegraph journalist - not to discuss public authorities' obligation to promote race equality, why it's proven a colour-blind approach to race won't stop racism, or why my training has been so widely requested since 2020 - but to ask me to justify my work and why it's been paid for "by taxpayers".

'The ridiculous email, which you can see on my Instagram account, and the published article - in which a Tory politician said "this woman should be defunded immediately" - is a saddening attempt to intimidate a Black female professional, reinforce the misunderstanding of critical race theory, and align me with political extremism in an attempt to undermine my expertise, and potentially harm my business.'

Sector organisations and individuals have posted their rebuttals to accusations made in the article.

Early Education said in a statement, 'We deplore the recent article by The Telegraph which singled out Liz Pemberton for criticism of her anti-racism training, which she has delivered for many clients including local authorities.

'The Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (as recently revised by the current Conservative government) states that: "The EYFS seeks to provide: ...equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice, ensuring that every child is included and supported." It also states that, "Providers must follow their legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 including the fair and equal treatment of practitioners regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation."

'It is entirely right that training should be provided to practitioners on this aspect of the Statutory Framework, as on all their responsibilities.

'We affirm our support for the vital work that Liz and other practitioners do to promote awareness and understanding of anti-racism and discrimination, including her contribution to the recent Birth to 5 Matters guidance. This must not be shut down by ad hominem attacks, but should be part of an ongoing public debate about the lived experience of racism in our society and how it can be addressed.'

Tamsin Grimmer tweeted, '@lizpemtbnm training is excellent and all educators would benefit from attending. #AntiRacism starts with each of us.'

On Twitter, the Early Years Alliance said, 'As early educators, we are in a unique position to support young children to learn about racial equality & discrimination. Any suggestion that this is somehow 'inappropriate' because of the age of the children we work with is incredibly short-sighted.'

The National Day Nurseries Association said in a statement, 'Early years is a crucial stage for children's development especially personal and social development. It's important practitioners can access a wide range of support that they might want in discussing racial equality and inclusive practice. This should be encouraged not criticised.'

Eliane Bennett of Keeping Early Years Unique said in a statement, 'Our highly esteemed colleague Liz Pemberton has found herself the focus of a very unpleasant piece of "so called" journalism in The Telegraph which misrepresents her, her important work. It attempts to discredit her.

'Many members of Keeping Early Years Unique know Liz and her work well. She worked alongside KEYU as part of the Early Years Coalition to develop the ground-breaking 'Birth to Five Matters' guidance. She is a respected consultant, author and trainer whom many of us have worked with and learned from. She always sparks essential discussion and reflection to support the workforce to challenge their thinking and practice, to do better for their children.'

Commenting on The Telegraph article, Pemberton added, 'There was no desire to engage with what decolonising mindsets and play spaces truly means, or how my work is actually empowering practitioners to competently challenge incidents of racism, and to confidently satisfy the natural curiosity that all children have pertaining to skin colours, hair textures, and religious and/or cultural practices.

'Those who know me and my mission, and the future that I'm trying to shape for our children, know that I lead with love. I want to educate people on how to embed anti-racist and inclusive practices in their work, and why it's vital to do so in the early years sector when children are at such an impressionable age.'

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Early years sector condemns Telegraph article and unites behind Liz Pemberton's 'vital work'

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The sector has rallied behind early years expert and trainer Liz Pemberton, after The Telegraph published what many consider to be a highly personal attack about her company The Black Nursery Manager, under the headline 'Councils hire "Maoist" consultants to "decolonise minds" of nursery school children.'

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The Government's 'Inclusive Britain' plan outlined today signals a welcome de-escalation from a contrived and divisive culture war.

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Indeed, many of its recommendations echo those the Runnymede Trust and the wider race equality sector have been calling for many years. Of course we welcome measures which will begin to address racial and socio-economic disparities. Although this plan for an 'Inclusive Britain' doesn't go far enough, it is a good start.

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The devil is in the detail, and we look forward to seeing the detail of many of these proposals before we can assess how effective they will be at tackling racial discrimination in practice.

The Government must be the driver pushing an agenda which works to transformatively address racial disparities in Britain. Instead, these proposals outlined are often vague and lack clear targets or accountability measures. They come two years after deep-rooted inequalities were made glaringly clear during the pandemic, and what we now need is transformative change.

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Of note is a consistent mention of 'trust' (or lack thereof) from ethnic minority communities towards the essential services that should be there to support them. It is imperative that Black and ethnic minority communities are not blamed for mistrust in public services which have let them down. We must also question how significant a role mistrust plays in explaining racial disparities, and where we must look elsewhere to explain these.

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We don't want to see the Government giving with one hand to ethnic minority communities while taking away with the other. Instead, action from the whole of Government is needed to address racial disparities in our society. This means recognising the negative impact of the Government's own upcoming legislative agenda, which poses the most significant and sustained threat to ethnic minority people's civil rights in recent memory.

This includes the Police Crimes Sentencing and Courts Bill, the proposed overhaul of the Human Rights Act, and its new draconian immigration plans. This raft of legislation looks poised to set ethnic minority people back from exercising their rights and further entrench already discriminatory practices and policies.

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For example, actions to address police powers in the 'Inclusive Britain' plan, including a framework for the scrutiny of police powers, are coupled with the introduction of the Serious Violence Reduction Order - a new stop and search power being put in place by the Government.

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We also note with alarm, particularly given the abhorrent reports of Child Q's case, proposals outlined to increase police presence in schools through the introduction of a so-called 'Mini Police'. Again, the detail of these proposals will determine how effective they could be at tackling racial discrimination in practice.

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Real tangible measures to address racial disparities head on would mean first undoing the damage existing policies and legislation have done, and then tackling structural racial and socio-economic inequalities to look towards a positive and inclusive vision for the future.

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We are pleased to see the introduction of plans to diversify the history curriculum as well as other education reforms. The Runnymede Trust has been instrumental in calling for changes to the History and English Literature curricula for some time. Such changes are necessary to reflect the accuracy and balance in the teaching of history . Should a diverse panel be set up, which we welcome, such a panel would be expected to not erase the history of colonialism and empire in Britain's history. These proposals also come in tandem with the recent Government guidance on impartiality in schools which stifle conversations about race, and racism branding these as 'politically partial'.

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Likewise, race and class are not issues that can, or should, be counterposed. Over half of ethnic minority children in the UK are currently living in poverty. Trying to embroil us with politically-charged discussions about terms such as "white privilege" has very little to do with the primary issue of addressing socio-economic disparities in society.

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Indeed, should policy makers wish that teaching around the issue of privilege occurs in our classrooms, it should logically be made clear to pupils that many white children face considerable disadvantage. Generally speaking, this will not be due to racial barriers but rather socio-economic. As a result, students may begin to understand what the Government and Runnymede Trust agree to be the intersectional nature of those structural barriers that inhibit equality in society, and may grow up to be the adults who pull down those barriers whether related to socioeconomic, gender, racial or other inequality.

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The proposals laid out in 'Inclusive Britain' are framed as part of the Government's 'Levelling Up' agenda. We cannot forget how 'invisible' ethnic minority people, largely concentrated in Britain's inner cities, have been in the levelling up agenda so far. Of the 17 local authorities with the highest rates of child poverty in the UK, 10 are in London. And in each of these local authorities, Black and ethnic minority children account for over 50% of the youth population.

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There are steps the Government could easily take to improve the parameters by which we assess racial equity, and that could quickly lead to positive outcomes. This includes introducing legislation to make ethnicity pay gap reporting mandatory at organisations employing more than 250 staff, as occurred with the gender pay gap back in 2017, and which the Government has signalled some move towards in 'Inclusive Britain'. We consider this to be a low-hanging fruit and one that the Government can act on quickly, following the lead of private sector firms who are already implementing ethnicity pay gap monitoring.

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Until we are able to assess the details of the proposals outlined in Inclusive Britain, we welcome these recommendations tentatively. However, we reiterate that they alone will not go far enough to address the scale of racial disparities. None of us want our Black and ethnic minority children to feel as though they cannot aspire in this country or belong. Equally, we are letting them down if we cannot improve the institutions in which they are likely to be mistreated in the future unless . Individual and institutional racism makes our society worse, and this is why any vision for an 'Inclusive Britain' needs a dual focus. The test of an ambitious action plan will be in a roadmap that addresses both of these forms of racism.

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We take this opportunity to offer our consultative support to the Government in formulating the detail of these proposals, and look forward to working with them to build the vision of a levelled up Britain we both share.

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The Runnymede Trust | News - Does the government's plans for an 'Inclusive Britain' signal a shift on race?

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The Government's 'Inclusive Britain' plan outlined today signals a welcome de-escalation from a contrived and divisive culture war. ‍ Indeed, many of its recommendations echo those the Runnymede Trust and the wider race equality sector have been calling for many years. Of course we welcome measures which will begin to address racial and socio-economic disparities.