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Survivors Network - Working with interpreters Briefing Part B - final

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Survivors Network - Working with interpreters Briefing Part A - final

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https://weareagenda.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Double-disadvantage-FINAL.pdf

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SONG: I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free by Nina Simone 

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SONG: I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free by Nina Simone 

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inNBpizpZkE

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Nina Simone - I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free (Official Audio)

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BOOK: My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithewaite 

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BOOK: My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithewaite 

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My sister the serial killer, Oyinkan Braithwaite

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When Korede's dinner is interrupted one night by a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what's expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach.

This'll be the third boyfriend Ayoola's dispatched in, quote, self-defence and the third mess that her lethal little sibling has left Korede to clear away. She should probably go to the police for the good of the menfolk of Nigeria, but she loves her sister and, as they say, family always comes first. Until, that is, Ayoola starts dating the doctor where Korede works as a nurse.

Korede's long been in love with him, and isn't prepared to see him wind up with a knife in his back: but to save one would mean sacrificing the other.

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When Korede's dinner is interrupted one night by a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what's expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach.This'll be the third boyfriend Ayoola's dispatched in, quote, self-defence and the third mess that her lethal little sibling has left Ko

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BOOK: Feminism Interrupted by Lola Olufemi

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BOOK: Feminism Interrupted by Lola Olufemi

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Feminism Interrupted, Lola Olufemi

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Plastered over t-shirts and tote bags, the word 'feminist' has entered the mainstream and is fast becoming a popular slogan for our generation. But feminism isn't a commodity up for purchase; it's a weapon for fighting against injustice.

This revolutionary book reclaims feminism from consumerism through exploring state violence against women, reproductive justice, transmisogyny, sex work, gendered Islamophobia and much more, showing that the struggle for gendered liberation is a struggle for justice, one that can transform the world for everybody.

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Plastered over t-shirts and tote bags, the word 'feminist' has entered the mainstream and is fast becoming a popular slogan for our generation. But feminism isn't a commodity up for purchase; it's a weapon for fighting against injustice. This revolutionary book reclaims feminism from consumerism through exploring state

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Queenie, Candice Carty-Williams

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Meet Queenie. She just can't cut a break.

Well, apart from one from her long term boyfriend, Tom. That's just a break though. Definitely not a break up.

Stuck between a boss who doesn't seem to see her, a family who don't seem to listen (if it's not Jesus or water rates, they're not interested), and trying to fit in two worlds that don't really understand her, it's no wonder she's struggling. She was named to be queen of everything. So why is she finding it so hard to rule her own life?A darkly comic and bitingly subversive take on life, love, race and family, Queenie will have you nodding in recognition, crying in solidarity and rooting for this unforgettable character every step of the way.

Perfect for fans of Dolly Alderton, Sally Rooney, Diana Evans and Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

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Meet Queenie. She just can't cut a break. Well, apart from one from her long term boyfriend, Tom. That's just a break though.

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BOOK: An American Marriage by Tayari Jones  

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BOOK: An American Marriage by Tayari Jones  

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An American Marriage, Tayari Jones

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Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of the American Dream. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. Until one day they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined.

Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn't commit. Devastated and unmoored, Celestial finds herself struggling to hold on to the love that has been her centre, taking comfort in Andre, their closest friend. When Roy's conviction is suddenly overturned, he returns home ready to resume their life together.

A masterpiece of storytelling, An American Marriage offers a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three unforgettable characters who are at once bound together and separated by forces beyond their control.

Longlisted For The Orwell Prize For Political Fiction, 2019'A moving portrayal of the effects of a wrongful conviction on a young African-American couple', Barack Obama

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Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of the American Dream. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career.

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BOOK: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo

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BOOK: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo

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Girl Woman Other, Bernadine Evaristo

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***WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE 2019***

SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

This is Britain as you've never read it.
This is Britain as it has never been told.

From Newcastle to Cornwall, from the birth of the twentieth century to the teens of the twenty-first, Girl Woman Other follows a cast of twelve characters on their personal journeys through this country and the last hundred years. They're each looking for something - a shared past, an unexpected future, a place to call home, somewhere to fit in, a lover, a missed mother, a lost father, even just a touch of hope.

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WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE 2019*** SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER This is Britain as you've never read it.This is Britain as it has never been told.

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Beloved by Toni Morrison

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Discover Toni Morrison's most iconic work in this Pulitzer-prize winning novel that exemplifies her powerful and important place in contemporary American literature.

It is the mid-1800s and as slavery looks to be coming to an end, Sethe is haunted by the violent trauma it wrought on her former enslaved life at Sweet Home, Kentucky. Her dead baby daughter, whose tombstone bears the single word, Beloved, returns as a spectre to punish her mother, but also to elicit her love. Told with heart-stopping clarity, melding horror and beauty, Beloved is Toni Morrison's enduring masterpiece.

'Toni Morrison was a giant of her times and ours..."Beloved," is a heartbreaking testimony to the ongoing ravages of slavery, and should be read by all' Margaret Atwood

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Discover Toni Morrison's most iconic work in this Pulitzer-prize winning novel that exemplifies her powerful and important place in contemporary American literature.

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https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MsdreArt

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Announcement MsDre is a Brighton-based artist and illustrator.

Her work reflects her great loves of the past, and is inspired by Greek myths, the 1920s, architecture, mid-century design and kitsch, pin-up girls, and all manner of vintage wonders.

Coming from a cultural diverse background, with Jamaican, Indian, African and English heritage, she naturally includes these visual influences in her works, whether this is the hummingbirds from home village in Jamaica, or the graffiti boys she hung out with as a teenager in North London.

Her originals use a mix of different media: often using stencils and print as a starting point, augmented with pen and ink, acrylic paints and markers, collage, and lashings of spray paint. She turns her original illustrations into digital art to make a wider collection of accessible open edition prints.

Announcement

Last updated on 03 Jan, 2021

MsDre is a Brighton-based artist and illustrator.

Her work reflects her great loves of the past, and is inspired by Greek myths, the 1920s, architecture, mid-century design and kitsch, pin-up girls, and all manner of vintage wonders.

Coming from a cultural diverse background, with Jamaican, Indian, African and English heritage, she naturally includes these visual influences in her works, whether this is the hummingbirds from home village in Jamaica, or the graffiti boys she hung out with as a teenager in North London.

Her originals use a mix of different media: often using stencils and print as a starting point, augmented with pen and ink, acrylic paints and markers, collage, and lashings of spray paint. She turns her original illustrations into digital art to make a wider collection of accessible open edition prints.

Accepted payment methods

Accepts Etsy Gift Cards and Etsy Credits

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You searched for: MsdreArt! Discover the unique items that MsdreArt creates. At Etsy, we pride ourselves on our global community of sellers. Each Etsy seller helps contribute to a global marketplace of creative goods. By supporting MsdreArt, you're supporting a small business, and, in turn, Etsy!

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all about love

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"The word "love" is most often defined as a noun, yet...we would all love better if we used it as a verb," writes Bell Hooks as she comes out fighting and on fire in The Utne Reader declared bell hooks one of the "100 Visionaries Who Can Change Your Life." All About Love. Here, at her most provocative and intensely personal, the renowned scholar, cultural critic, and feminist skewers our view of love as romance. In its place she offers a proactive new ethic for a people and a society bereft with lovelessness.

As Bell Hooks uses her incisive mind and razor-sharp pen to explore the question "What is love?" her answers strike at both the mind and heart. In thirteen concise chapters, Hooks examines her own search for emotional connection and society's failure to provide a model for learning to love. Razing the cultural paradigm that the ideal love is infused with sex and desire, she provides a new path to love that is sacred, redemptive, and healing for the individuals and for a nation.

All About Love is a powerful affirmation of just how profoundly she can.

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"The word "love" is most often defined as a noun, yet...we would all love better if we used it as a verb," writes Bell Hooks as she comes out fighting and on fire in All About Love.

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Summary

Communion Summary

Communion: The Female Search for Love by bell hooks

Renowned visionary and theorist bell hooks began her exploration of the meaning of love in American culture with the critically acclaimed All About Love: New Visions. She continued her national dialogue with the bestselling Salvation: Black People and Love. Now hooks culminates her triumphant trilogy of love with Communion: The Female Search for Love. Intimate, revealing, provocative, Communion challenges every female to courageously claim the search for love as the heroic journey we must all choose to be truly free. In her trademark commanding and lucid language, hooks explores the ways ideas about women and love were changed by feminist movement, by women's full participation in the workforce, and by the culture of self-help. Communion is the heart-to-heart talk every woman -- mother, daughter, friend, and lover -- needs to have.

Communion Reviews

Masterful. A thinking women's (and man's) valentine, a fitting conclusion to hooks' groundbreaking work on love in American life. -- Los Angeles Times A powerful guidebook to life. -- Library Journal

About bell hooks

Bell Hooks is a cultural critic, feminist theorist, and writer. Celebrated as one of our nation's leading public intellectual by The Atlantic Monthly, as well as one of Utne Reader's 100 Visionaries Who Could Change Your Life, she is a charismatic speaker who divides her time among teaching, writing, and lecturing around the world. Previously a professor in the English departments at Yale University and Oberlin College, hooks is the author of more than 17 books, including All About Love: New Visions; RememberedRapture: The Writer at Work; Wounds of Passion: A Writing Life; Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood; Killing Rage: Ending Racism; Art on My Mind: Visual Politics; and Breaking Bread: Insurgent Black Intellectual Life. She lives in New York City.

Additional information

Communion: The Female Search for Love by bell hooks

Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.

This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

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Communion By bell hooks | Used | 9780060938291 | World of Books

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Communion Summary Renowned visionary and theorist bell hooks began her exploration of the meaning of love in American culture with the critically acclaimed All About Love: New Visions. She continued her national dialogue with the bestselling Salvation: Black People and Love. Now hooks culminates her triumphant trilogy of love with Communion: The Female Search for Love.

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https://afroribooks.co.uk/

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A night that will define their story for ever.
Opal is a fiercely independent young woman, a Black punk artist before her time.

So when Neville Charles discovers her one night, she takes him up on his offer to make rock music together. In 1970's New York, just as she's finding her niche as part of a flamboyant and funky creative scene, a rival band brandishes a Confederate flag at a concert. Opal's bold protest sets off a chain of events that is a reminder that repercussions are always harsher for women, especially Black women, who dare to speak their truth.

Decades later, music journalist S. Sunny Shelton seizes the chance to curate an oral history about her idols. Sunny thought she knew most of the stories leading up to the cult duo's most politicized chapter, but as her interviews dig deeper, a nasty new allegation from an unexpected source threatens everything.

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A night that will define their story for ever. Opal is a fiercely independent young woman, a Black punk artist before her time. So when Neville Charles discovers her one night, she takes him up on his offer to make rock music together.

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https://afroribooks.co.uk/products/the-color-purple-alice-walker?_pos=1&_sid=f69568241&_ss=r

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''A lush celebration of all that it means to be a black female. I love that The Color Purple doesn't try to soften its blows but is also courageous enough to hold on to a wonderfully affirming faith in possibility, in forgiveness and kindness and hope' Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

'The Color Purple is my go-to comfort novel. Every single time I read this book, I walk away as a slightly better person than I was when I picked it up' Tayari Jones

'I think that The Color Purple was the first book that made me think that I could try to be a writer - or that made me aware that a young black woman from the South could write about the South' Jesmyn Ward

A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance and silence through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then the sisters to each other despite the unknown. Abused repeatedly by the man she calls 'father', Celie has two children taken away from her and is trapped into an ugly marriage.

But then she meets the glamorous Shug Avery, singer and magic-maker - a woman who has taken charge of her own destiny. And gradually Celie discovers the power and joy of her own spirit, freeing her from her past and reuniting her with those she loves. Beloved by generations of readers, The Color Purple broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, narrating the lives of women through their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery.

Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker's epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love. 'One of the most haunting books you could ever wish to read. It is stunning - moving, exciting and wonderful' Lenny Henry'The Color Purple needs no category other than the fact that it is superb' Rita Mae Brown'The great irony about The Color Purple is that it transcends colour.

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The Color Purple by Alice Walker: The classic, Pulitzer Prize-winning

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THE ICONIC CLASSIC, WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE ONE OF THE BBC 100 NOVELS THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD ''A lush celebration of all that it means to be a black female.

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https://www.creative-interventions.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/CI-Toolkit-Final-ENTIRE-Aug-2020-new-cover.pdf

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VIDEO: Jay in conversation with Shalini Nair (Trustee), Sumanta Roy (Imkaan) and Marai Larasi (Imkaan)

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VIDEO: Jay in conversation with Shalini Nair (Trustee), Sumanta Roy (Imkaan) and Marai Larasi (Imkaan)

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https://www.facebook.com/survivorsnet/videos/222996049223930/?__so__=channel_tab&__rv__=all_videos_card

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Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

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Looking Forward, Looking Back: A Conversation on Race and Sexual Violence
Join us in listening to the expert perspectives of Marai Larasi, Shalini Nair and Sumanta Roy as they discuss feminism, survivor service provision and the importance of women of colour being included at every level of the conversation. We will be airing this panel discussion at 2pm on Thursday 26th November - join us for the premiere to hear more, and to join the live chat to discuss with other viewers how we can work towards a better world, and better services, for all survivors. This is a huge discussion to cover in an hour, so please join us in seeing this as the start of many (potentially challenging) conversations for us to continue in our own spaces, and not as an exhaustive expression of the needs of women of colour in survivor support work. This event is facilitated by Jay Breslaw, CEO of Survivors’ Network, to mark thirty years of service provision in Sussex for survivors of sexual violence and to look forward to the next thirty years. Jay will hold the space and open the discussion – however, the questions have been agreed collaboratively, and the discussion will be led by the panellists.
Posted by Survivors' Network on Thursday, November 26, 2020

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TV: When They See Us (Available on Netflix)

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TV: When They See Us (Available on Netflix)

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https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7137906/

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See production, box office, & company info

In 1989, a jogger was assaulted and raped in New York's Central Park, and five young people were subsequently charged with the crime. The quintet, labeled the Central Park Five, maintained its innocence and spent years fighting the convictions, hoping to be exonerated. This limited series spans a quarter of a century, from when the teens are first questioned about the incident in the spring of 1989, going through their exoneration in 2002 and ultimately the settlement reached with the city of New York in 2014. The cast is full of Emmy nominees and winners, including - Michael Kenneth Williams, John Leguizamo, Felicity Huffman, and Blair Underwood. Oscar nominated and Emmy winner Ava DuVernay co-wrote and directed the four episodes. Jwelch5742

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When They See Us (TV Mini Series 2019) - IMDb

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When They See Us: Created by Ava DuVernay. With Asante Blackk, Caleel Harris, Ethan Herisse, Marquis Rodriguez. Five teens from Harlem become trapped in a nightmare when they're falsely accused of a brutal attack in Central Park. Based on the true story.

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REPORT: Expanding the Frame: Deepening our Demands for Safety and Healing for Black Survivors of Sexual Violence 

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REPORT: Expanding the Frame: Deepening our Demands for Safety and Healing for Black Survivors of Sexual Violence 

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https://incite-national.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ritchie-Expanding-Our-Frame-Deepening-our-Demands-for-Safety-and-Healing-for-Black-Survivors-of-Sexual-Violence.pdf

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https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4975722/

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See production, box office, & company info

Three time periods - young adolescence, mid-teen and young adult - in the life of black-American Chiron is presented. When a child, Chiron lives with his single, crack addict mother Paula in a crime ridden neighborhood in Miami. Chiron is a shy, withdrawn child largely due to his small size and being neglected by his mother, who is more concerned about getting her fixes and satisfying her carnal needs than taking care of him. Because of these issues, Chiron is bullied, the slurs hurled at him which he doesn't understand beyond knowing that they are meant to be hurtful. Besides his same aged Cuban-American friend Kevin, Chiron is given what little guidance he has in life from a neighborhood drug dealer named Juan, who can see that he is neglected, and Juan's caring girlfriend Teresa, whose home acts as a sanctuary away from the bullies and away from Paula's abuse. With this childhood as a foundation, Chiron may have a predetermined path in life, one that will only be magnified in terms of its problems when he reaches his difficult teen years when peer pressure affects what he and many of his peers do, unless he follows Juan's advice of truly making his own decisions for himself.

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See production, box office, & company info Three time periods - young adolescence, mid-teen and young adult - in the life of black-American Chiron is presented. When a child, Chiron lives with his single, crack addict mother Paula in a crime ridden neighborhood in Miami.

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https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5052448/

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https://www.thisisbooklove.com/

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Anti-racist Books | BookLove Multicultural Travelling Book Carnival

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www.thisisbooklove.com is a multicultural bookshop specialising in inclusive,bi-lingual, diverse, anti-racist books for children and adults.We travel to schools and festivals to help customers and teachers find cultural content.We are campaigning for more diverse books in schools.We curate bookclubs

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https://www.suneetalondon.co.uk/

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From moisturisers to cleansers to scrubs, almost Usually, preservatives are the second ingredient in moisturisers, after water (eau). The preservatives need to be so high up the ingredients list to preserve all that water! It makes you question what exactly we are paying for when we spend £20 on a moisturiser whose main ingredient is water. These preservative ingredients are used in skincare products to give them an incredibly long shelf life, so that they can be bought to sit on shop shelves and in stock rooms without fear that they will go off. This does not mean that the product is necessarily 'good for your skin'; it most likely means that the product has a high preservative content.

Alcohol and other similar preservatives can make a thick or chemical-laden skin-care product feel almost weightless, creating a deceptively pleasant aesthetic. And what's more they make you use more of their product. These ingredients do not just preserve products but they actually increase absorption of products into your skin. Known as penetration enhancers, these ingredients sink quickly into your skin by breaking down the skin's barrier - destroying the very substances that keep your skin healthy over the long term. Not to mention how problematic it is that these preservatives are helping the other harmful ingredients absorb into your body...

Have you ever used a moisturiser and noted that it sinks into your skin straight away? all cosmetic products sold on the high street have the same main ingredient: water.

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From moisturisers to cleansers to scrubs, almost Usually, preservatives are the second ingredient in moisturisers, after water (eau). The preservatives need to be so high up the ingredients list to preserve all that water! It makes you question what exactly we are paying for when we spend £20 on a moisturiser whose main ingredient is water.

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REPORT: Home Truths: Undoing racism and delivering real diversity in the charity sector

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REPORT: Home Truths: Undoing racism and delivering real diversity in the charity sector

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https://www.acevo.org.uk/reports/home-truths/

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Home Truths: Undoing racism and delivering real diversity in the charity sector

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This report contains discussions about people's experiences of racism which could be distressing or triggering. If you feel distressed reading the report or would like support for your emotional or mental health you can find resources at: The Black, African and Asian Therapy NetworkBlack ThriveSamaritans Scroll down to download the report and read about the...

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ARTICLE: WHITE THERAPISTS: HERE'S WHAT YOUR BLACK COLLEAGUES WANT YOU TO KNOW 

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ARTICLE: WHITE THERAPISTS: HERE'S WHAT YOUR BLACK COLLEAGUES WANT YOU TO KNOW 

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Last month, George Floyd was killed by police on the street in Minneapolis; almost immediately, the video of his death circulated on the internet. As much as we wanted to look away, we could not. The image of Floyd's final minutes reignited centuries of collective grief and trauma. The officer's knee on Floyd's neck represents the struggle many of us have felt for years, as we've suffered and struggled to manage and navigate the waters of systemic racism. His cries for help, his wanting to be seen and heard, are the cries of all of us who work hard to acquire just a small slice of the American Dream. America is hurting, and Black Americans are hemorrhaging with pain.

We founded the Facebook group Clinicians of Color, LLC, (COC) in 2016. Currently, it has over 12,000 members. Its purpose is to help therapists of color start or grow a private practice, but we also provide clinical training to help members develop skills, acquire knowledge, and become successful in business. The group has become a source of tremendous support and a safe place to process life's challenges.

We've spent the last few days processing our feelings, with emotions ranging from profound sadness to intense rage. Many of us are experiencing difficulty sleeping and trouble concentrating. We feel alienated and angry. One theme that comes up often in our group is the sense that white therapists struggle to understand and truly empathize with race-based trauma.

Race-based trauma is a theory developed by Robert T. Carter, showing how after experiencing acts of racism, people of color exhibit symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress. This applies to the difficulties experienced by Black and brown therapists.

To amplify the voices of our colleagues and clients of color, we decided to ask COC members to share their experiences of race-based trauma and offer guidance on how our white counterparts can better support us, as well as their own clients of color. Here are just a few of their responses-a small testament to how much we have to say. If you have Black colleagues or clients, we think you'll find this feedback insightful, and we hope you'll use it to become better informed about what people of color experience and need during this difficult time.

- Lisa Savage, LCSW, and Kim Knight, LPC

***

"I think it's important that all clinicians today understand the nuances of historical and intergenerational trauma. That entails understanding the history of race and discrimination in this country as well as how that history has played out in our professions, and continues to be perpetrated in the work we do. Our work requires more than just kindness; we must think critically about what we've been taught and understand how what happens at the macro levels of our society impacts the client directly in front of us."
Kimberly Grocher, LCSW, CPC, RYT
New York, NY

"As a Black clinician, I recently spent a moment with a client, sharing her emotions about the reoccurring events faced by our community. There needs to be a requirement that clinicians engage in training on racism in the Black community before they can get their license renewed. This training should be presented by someone in the Black community."
Tunisia Buise, LCSW-C
Baltimore, MD
"Stop asking the Black community to help you with your guilt and pain when our community is suffering. We're trying to hold our community together with the last strength we have in our bodies. Our collective mental health is fragile, rooted in our DNA. Understand that."
Tiffany C. Brown, PsyD
Chicago, IL
"I know many people love to throw around the words ally and cultural competence. But I hope they can understand that trust in a therapist isn't granted because that therapist attended a three-hour workshop on cultural competence, led by someone who isn't a person of color. That doesn't make them an ally. We need therapists who are willing to do deep anti-racism work, who present with cultural humility. This way, we can choose our allies. Allies isn't' self-appointed. They're chosen."
Shamyra Howard-Blackburn, LCSW
Baton Rouge, LA

"Our mandate as therapists is to work within the scope of our practice. We understand if we were seeing a client with chronic pain, OCD, or PTSD, that we'd need to pursue training or supervision in that area before continuing our work. Otherwise, we'd run the risk of exacerbating their issue, even though we might think we're being helpful. The same is true when we're working with clients of color, many of whom are experiencing the effects of racial trauma. Therapists who continue working with these populations without any lived experience, training, or supervision often end up retraumatizing their clients in their attempts to be helpful."
Jocelyn St. Cyr, LICSW
Arlington, MA

"I've begun telling students and beginning counselors to 'lean in and look within' at their own biases. Acknowledging personal biases and educating oneself about culture and ethnicities different from your own are ways to shift your thinking and become more open to differences. This can challenge and foster change."
Shaketa Bruce, MS, LPC, NCC, CCH
Atlanta, GA

"We cannot accept people saying, 'Get over it, it already happened, move on.' I think this is a major problem-the lack of acknowledgment that we as a race have experienced trauma. We have to say it out loud, acknowledge it, and understand how this crime against humanity manifests. Only then can we truly address it, see it for what it is."

Zamantha Gobourne, LICSW
Washington, DC

"I think recognizing that clients of color may never feel completely regulated is important. It's important to honor that there's always a sense of hyperarousal due to systemic and institutionalized racism. Helping clients acknowledge and manage this is important to decreasing chronic stress, the physical and mental damage it can cause."
Nina Keeler, LMFT
West Bloomfield Township, MI

"Black pain shouldn't need to be intellectualized to be heard."
Phi Rochon, LMSW
Laurel, MD

"Understand that systemic racism contributes to Black people's vulnerability to psychological, emotional, and social distress. It makes them hesitant to seek mental health services, especially from those who don't look like them."
Tytannie Harris, LCSW
Chicago, IL

"Black people should be provided with compassion and grace after trauma. Traumatic responses don't always look civil and organized. Trauma is seen in many different ways by our community. Generational trauma runs deeply in the Black community. Our cries have been unheard for so long, and that erupts in various ways. Don't be misled by what you see in the media. What appears to be violence may be pain."
April Lamb, LCSW
Chicago, IL

"Black folk shouldn't have to navigate the age-old narrative of 'not all cops are bad.' It's dismissive and does harm. There's a rational explanation for our traumatizing reality-it's based in history. The narrative that not all cops are bad may feel true if you don't have to live with the reality that a cop could take your life without accountability or consequence, simply because your skin is brown. It can happen regardless of socioeconomic status, gender, affiliation, or education. It's a reality for people of color that police can trigger the brain to feel endangered before helped. It's a trauma response."
Crystal Jones, LCSW
Fredericksburg, VA

"Why is it that black and brown people who suffer from substance use disorder are treated differently from white people who also suffer from it? In the George Floyd arrest video, around the 5:27-mark, the Asian cop mocks George by saying, 'All I have to say is don't use drugs.' The autopsy report indicated that there was a toxic substance in George's body, but nothing clearly states he was an addict. Throughout history, society has given heavier penalties to and stigmatized people of color who suffer from drug addiction, whereas with white people it's looked at as a disease. The criminal justice system gives people of color harsher sentences and limited or no assistance to help them with their disease. When therapists work with people of color who suffer from substance use disorder, they have to understand that they're treating more than addiction. They're treating systemic injustice, trauma, and generational hurt."

Katie Onitiri, EdS, LAMFT, LCADC
Ewing, NJ

"I believe that historical and current systemic deficits need to be acknowledged in order to move us into a place of healing. Talking is good, but action is better."
Erica Kelley, LPC, CRC, LBSW
Detriot, MI

"The white majority needs to understand that after being constantly referred to as angry, intimidating, and savage by others, it's very difficult for Black people not to be cautious, mistrusting, and frustrated. We know that no matter how much we've contributed to making this country great, we will never get the credit or fair treatment we deserve. What we need now more than ever is true allies."
Chantel Bratcher-Coleman, LPCMH, CAADC
Newark, DE

"I believe it's important for our white counterparts to know that people of color are hurting. The unfortunate and tragic death of George Floyd and countless other Black men and women at the hands of people in positions of authority brings up generational trauma for people of color. Our white colleagues need to understand this, search their hearts, and do the work necessary to be aware of their prejudices and biases to be a catalyst for change. No longer is it enough to be sensitive to our plight. Now, more than ever, it's imperative to do something, to take political action, to end racial injustices and disparities. Then and only then can this nation work on collective healing and truly uphold its name as the United States of America."
Diona Shelton, LCSW
Troy, IL

"It's essential to integrate our understanding of trauma with the growing clinical understanding of the impact of racial trauma on individuals. If we're truly trauma-informed, there's no way to ignore the clinical implications of racial trauma on individuals and communities of color. There is an ethical and professional obligation in working with Black people, Indigenous people, or people of color to understand how a lack of safety, systemic and historical oppression, and survival and trauma responses impact mental health, goals, and constructed core values."
Crystal Blanton, LCSW
Pleasant Hill, CA

"Being Black in America makes us a target for hatred, bias, fear, and even death. As a wife and a mother, I'm afraid that every time my son or husband leaves the house, they might not make it home safely. I fear they'll be judged just for their color. How can your race determine the quality of life you have in this country? It truly troubles me."
Monica Douglass-Davis, LPC, NCC, CPCS
Snellville, GA
***
Lisa R. Savage, LCSW, is a social work graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, who focuses on bridging gaps in mental health services, particularly in marginalized communities. Savage founded The Center for Child Development (CCD) in April 2007, located in Newark, DE, designed to improve access to mental health services for children and families in the state. Kim L. Knight, LPC, is an author, coach, speaker, and licensed mental health counselor with over 20 years' experience in the wellness and helping profession. After years in the healthcare industry, she became a mental health therapist. She currently practices in Long Island, NY. For more discussion, resources, and training opportunities, please visit cliniciansofcolor.org.
www.kknightcounseling.com www.thecenterforchilddevelopment.com

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White Therapists, Here's What Your Black Colleagues Want You to Know

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For people of color, the murder of George Floyd reignites centuries of collective grief and trauma. Here, the two founders of Clinicians of Color share some of their members' experiences with race-based trauma as well as their guidance on how white therapists can better support them and clients of color.

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https://www.waterstones.com/book/black-and-british/david-olusoga/9781529065602

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https://www.mentoring-matters.co.uk/

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Could we have a Book Club or Film Night - picking one film or book and reading it all together and then a Zoom discussion? I'd be happy to create some resources!

Or every team contributes 6 questions to a Trivia night?

Or could we go all out and have a guest speaker?

Or could we share all our knowledge of black-owned businesses / shops/ bars in Brighton / Sussex and committing to spending our money there during BHM?

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1. Getting a speaker in to a team meeting or separate meeting?

2. Having a couple of lunch and learns where we all watch a you tube video / interview and then discuss?

3. A themed book club session - where we all read an essay / short book and come together to talk it over?

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https://www.imkaan.org.uk/

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We know the current climate poses challenges for women experiencing abuse.

Please note that support and refuge services remain open.

We are working across our sector to ensure the government responds effectively to the needs of all survivors.

The Black feminist thinking which underpins Imkaan's work is rooted in the power of collective action. Our responses to overcome Covid-19 must centre those who are most vulnerable to the virus and its socio-economic impacts; we believe that society must urgently reimagine itself, and build strong communities based on the values of solidarity and mutual care.

During this extraordinary time, it is particularly important to work collaboratively to ensure that support is available to all women. Survivors who are migrant women, women with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) and women with insecure immigration status will always be supported by our specialist 'by and for' member services, who as a matter of principle do not engage in data-sharing with immigration enforcement.

If you, or someone you know, is experiencing abuse,

please visit our info page to get help:

In an emergency, call 999.

For anyone unable to make or receive phone calls at this time, Women's Aid has an online chat function:

The National Domestic Abuse Helpline also has an online contact form where you can state how and when you would like to be contacted: nationaldahelpline.org.uk/Contact-us

We know that migrant survivors and women with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF), in particular, may be facing increased barriers to accessing support, including with immigration issues during this time. The below updates and resources may be useful:

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Supporting the BME ending VAWG sector | United Kingdom | Imkaan

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We know the current climate poses challenges for women experiencing abuse. Please note that support and refuge services remain open. We are working across our sector to ensure the government responds effectively to the needs of all survivors. The Black feminist thinking which underpins Imkaan's work is rooted in the power of collective action.

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https://brighton-barco.org/

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The Black Anti-Racism Community Organisation (BARCO) was established in 2020 during the international spotlight over anti-Black racism. The organisation is formed to serve the needs of people who identify as Black African, Black Caribbean, belonging to the Black African diaspora, or of Black mixed race heritage in Brighton & Hove.

We are not a 'BAME' or 'BME' organisation.

We believe tackling racism is everyone's responsibility, not just Black people's. BARCO is here to engage with and help individuals, businesses and the wider community to tackle racism in our city.

Our aim is to unite the people of Brighton & Hove in the approach to anti-racism and ensure that Black people's experiences of living, working and visiting our city are free from any form of racism.

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BRIGHTON & HOVE BLACK ANTI-RACISM COMMUNITY ORGANISATION

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The Black Anti-Racism Community Organisation (BARCO) was established in 2020 during the international spotlight over anti-Black racism. The organisation is formed to serve the needs of people who identify as Black African, Black Caribbean, belonging to the Black African diaspora, or of Black mixed race heritage in Brighton & Hove.

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BLACK, AFRICAN AND ASIAN THERAPY NETWORK

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BLACK, AFRICAN AND ASIAN THERAPY NETWORK

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This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website.

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I'm an award winning journalist, author, and podcaster.

My debut non-fiction book, Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, was published in June 2017 to critical acclaim.

My podcast, About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge, premiered in March 2018. It was chosen as one of the best podcasts of 2018 by Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Harper's Bazaar UK, The Guardian, British GQ and Wired UK .

In 2019, my work earned me a place on Forbes' European 30 Under 30 list. In 2018, I won a Bold Moves Award from Women in the Creative Industries for the publication of Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race. In January 2018, British Vogue highlighted named me a 'new suffragette'. Prior to the publication of the book, in 2015, I won a 30 to watch award from MHP Communications. In 2014, the Guardian listed me as one of the 30 most exciting people under 30 in digital media. I've also been listed in Elle Magazine's 100 Inspirational Women list, and The Root's 30 black viral voices under 30.

A Sunday Times bestseller, Why I'm won the 2018 Jhalak Prize, the 2018 Bread and Roses Award for Radical Publishing, and a 2018 British Book Award for Narrative Non Fiction. A 2018 public poll by Academic Book Week named Why I'm the most influential book written by a woman.

The book earned a spot on many prestigious award longlists and shortlists, including the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, the Orwell Prize for Political Writing, the Specsavers National Book Award, and the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards. In it's year of publication, Why I'm was voted non-fiction book of the year for 2017 by booksellers at both Foyles and Blackwells.

Actress Emma Watson selected Why I'm for her feminist book club, Our Shared Shelf, in January 2018. You can watch us in conversation here.

I'm represented by Carrie Plitt at Felicity Bryan Associates.

Outside of writing, you might find me reading (obviously), cycling, buying nail polish or trying to find good coffee. I live in London.

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About - Reni Eddo-Lodge - 'Bemoaning Taylor Swift's intersectional feminism is like criticising Reni Eddo-Lodge for not writing enough catchy pop hooks.' - Nick Pettigrew

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I'm an award winning journalist, author, and podcaster. My debut non-fiction book, Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race, was published in June 2017 to critical acclaim. My podcast, About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge , premiered in March 2018.

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#CharitySoWhite sparked a conversation on the many ways in which racism operates within the charity sector. It was a conversation rooted in the experiences of people of colour working in the charity sector. We are a POC led campaign group seeking to tackle institutional racism in the charity sector.

This is a conversation about power and privilege. It is a conversation about how the structures and cultures within our sector reinforce inequality in our sector.

We don't want to burn the sector down, we want to make it better.

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CharitySoWhite sparked a conversation on the many ways in which racism operates within the charity sector. It was a conversation rooted in the experiences of people of colour working in the charity sector. We are a POC led campaign group seeking to tackle institutional racism in the charity sector.

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Providing Intergenerational Mentoring Through Education in London, Brighton, Kenya and Uganda. Mentivity is an inspirational mentoring organisation and alternative educational provision that provides aspirational support for young people, training for schools and parents through 1:1 mentoring, group conversation based learning and consultancy.

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The Halo Code

For Workplaces

Our workplace champions the right of staff to embrace all Afro-hairstyles. We acknowledge that Afro-textured hair is an important part of our Black employees' racial, ethnic, cultural, and religious identities, and requires specific styling for hair health and maintenance.

We celebrate Afro-textured hair worn in all styles including, but not limited to, afros, locs, twists, braids, cornrows, fades, hair straightened through the application of heat or chemicals, weaves, wigs, headscarves, and wraps.

In this workplace, we recognise and celebrate our colleagues' identities. We are a community built on an ethos of equality and respect where hair texture and style have no bearing on an employees ability to succeed.

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For Workplaces Our workplace champions the right of staff to embrace all Afro-hairstyles. We acknowledge that Afro-textured hair is an important part of our Black employees' racial, ethnic, cultural, and religious identities, and requires specific styling for hair health and maintenance.

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We are Black, minoritised and white women working in the violence against women and girls (VAWG) sector. We convened this anti-racism VAWG group in May 2020 to open up space for dialogue, action and the development of anti-racist standards and practices for the sector to start the work to become explicitly anti-racist.

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We believe that the no recourse to public funds (NRPF) policy is discriminatory and should end. While it continues and as part of our work to end it, we support people to remove the NRPF condition from their leave to remain. We run weekly casework sessions every Tuesday where we provide appointments and workshops for people with NRPF to help make ' Change of Conditions' applications for recourse to public funds. This means that people can access the welfare safety net in times of crisis or hardship. We also pursue lasting policy change and strategic litigation where necessary. We also provide emergency material supplies. We train, supervise, support and learn from a team of empathetic and dedicated casework volunteers, many of whom have experienced the system first-hand, to become more effective in this work and future related work.

Principles

We ultimately don't want a project like ours to be necessary, as we want the NRPF condition and the discrimination it contributes towards to end. We acknowledge that this may not happen quickly and we want to be sustainable while we're needed, and only as long as we're needed.

We want to be representative of and accountable to people who have navigated the systems and structures that we are advocating to change. This includes, but is not limited to, people who have used our service.

While our main area of focus is the NRPF policy, we also want to see the end of other systems of inequality and discrimination such as racism. This has to be part of a broader movement beyond professionalised organisations, which we want to support and be part of, but which we do not and cannot aspire to - or pretend to - lead.

We commit to treating everyone we advise as an individual, deserving of effective, thorough and empathetic support. We will be tenacious, innovative and optimistic in how we do this. We are committed to remaining adaptable and dynamic, to ensure that we are best suited to the needs of those we support.

Much of the work that we do as a project is volunteer-led. We are very conscious that unpaid or under-paid work can exacerbate poverty and inequality, and that the expectation of providing unpaid time can exclude many people from projects like ours. We also believe that there are non-monetary ways to value time, that money should not be the only incentive to do the work we do, and that many of our team actively do not seek to be paid for the time they provide. We commit to trying to address and be reflective about these issues. Currently we try to practically address this by paying all our staff the same wage, calculated according to the cost of living for a family. We offer paid opportunities to volunteers whenever they offer time above their agreed commitment, and some of our paid staff choose to volunteer for the same amount of time that volunteers offer. We also offer financial support to anyone that wishes to volunteer their time to the project (if we cannot give a wage for work, we try to offer expenses and bursaries).

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We believe that the no recourse to public funds (NRPF) policy is discriminatory and should end. While it continues and as part of our work to end it, we support people to remove the NRPF condition from their leave to remain.

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The term 'hard to reach' is quite stigmatising and diminishing. If we're hard to reach, it suggests we're the problem. It's because of something we do, where or who we are. It's as if the responsibility is completely on us to address and eliminate it as an issue. Not the services struggling to engage us.

The term 'hard to reach' is quite stigmatising and diminishing. If we're hard to reach, it suggests we're the problem

I'm not interested in trying to replace this term with phrases like 'seldom heard', 'hard to engage', or 'reachable distance'. Though they may have their merits, no language will perfectly represent our communities' concerns. In my opinion, they shift the goalpost towards focusing on the words themselves and distract us from engaging with the real issues.

'What is it about your outreach work that makes it hard to reach us?' I want to turn the spotlight onto mental health organisations and services with this question. I don't think it's asked enough, and I don't think it's answered well enough.

Hari Sewell, founding director of HS Consultancy, and consultant to our Young Black Men's steering group, has been asking that same question since his work began in the 90s. "I don't subscribe to the term. I don't use it. It's not a term that I recognise as having any value," he says. "Services find it hard to reach (communities) and they need to then ask, what is it about their communication systems or networks that makes it hard to reach them?"

This question moves us away from lazy reasons like 'we don't know what they want,' or 'they are not interested in participating,' and moves us towards thinking about biases and the underlying racism of the term. Let's not forget it is often (though not only) Black communities that are seen as the most hard to reach. Covid-19 is also disproportionately affecting our communities, on top of us still being at high risk of being diagnosed, sectioned, and detained under the Mental Health Act. Services should think about how they reflect these inequalities and systemic racism in their own structures. Especially about how their outreach work could make things worse if they remain blind to these issues.

"Services are turning up with a load of baggage and they are unaware of the baggage they're casting of 'we're here just helping'", Hari adds. "For all you know that community (has) known about somebody who's been sectioned and put in handcuffs (and) services can't even reflect on that. They think they're completely benevolent, so they just turn up and are like 'we're here to support you and this community'".

"For all you know that community's known about somebody who's been sectioned and put in handcuffs, (and) services can't even reflect on that. They think they're completely benevolent, so they just turn up and are like 'we're here to support you and this community'".

But they still hold power when working with Black communities. The power to section, to harm indirectly from held biases, or directly through the mismanagement of Black people's traumas and experiences. This rigid position of power will always bring similar results of obliviousness from services and mistrust from users.

I spoke to members of Young Black Men's steering group about why they think this issue remains. Nyall Simms, a PhD student and sports consultant, who thinks the issue of engagement and lack of trust is to do with "empty promises". He says that we develop a hardened layer from experiencing racism on a day to day basis, and it can cause services "to feel that they cannot get through to the Black man. Therefore, labelling them hard to reach".

In Daniel Thompson's case, a Young Person's Practitioner mentoring and supporting young people with their mental health, thinks that "in some instances, we are hard to engage (due) to past experiences that we have had as well as hearing the stories from others through many forms". Adding to that with his experience as a service user is Kai Wheeler, a singer by passion and trade. He says it's hard to be trusting "especially when you feel the person you are talking to has a lack of understanding". This hits harder when the things we need to talk about are linked to racism.

Hari thinks our and other well documented negative experiences, will continue to happen unless mental health services look at themselves to unpick their biases and power structures. "You've got to say: 'I'm aware that you're going to have views about who I am, being an officer of the state'," he says. "'Or you might have views about what we might have done to friends or family in terms of mental health... I don't want to assume that you might actually feel very positive (but) I know you might have your own views about what we might represent, and we can kind of talk about that'. That opens up a dialogue."

I acknowledge that progress is being made. I welcome what Mind have changed in their approach to become an anti-racist organisation. With its own research highlighting the worsening mental health of BAME communities during the pandemic , and its campaign tackling racial disparities in the use of the Mental Health Act.

But hurdles remain, for Mind and other mental health services. Reviewing biased structures behind closed doors will lead to tripping up on blind spots. It's not enough to reach out to leaders of our communities only to maintain a puppet spokesperson power dynamic. There's a growing body of research showing that those exposed to racism may be more likely to experience mental health problems. When it comes to racism, lived experiences are as important as professional ones. This can't be dismissed. Services should learn and make changes from it to rebuild trust.

When it comes to racism, lived experiences are as important as professional ones. This can't be dismissed. Services should learn and make changes from it to rebuild trust.

We aren't 'hard to reach'. Examining and dismantling biases, rigid power dynamics, and the systemic racism within organisation structures will show that to be true. And mental health services must be up to that task.

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Mental health services: 'What is it about your outreach that makes it hard to reach our Black communities?

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Isaac sits on our Young Black Men's steering group supporting the delivery of our Young Black Men's programme. He is a freelance journalist, dance artist and poet. Talking to other steering group members, he explores the long-held myth of 'hard to reach' when it comes to Black people accessing mental health support and services.

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Layla Saad is an author, speaker & teacher on the topics of race, identity, leadership, personal transformation & social change.

Layla is the new york times and Sunday Times bestselling author of the ground-breaking book Me and White Supremacy (2020), the host of Good Ancestor Podcast, and the founder of the Good Ancestor Book Club.

As a widely read writer, a globally sought speaker, and a popular podcast host, Layla is passionate about creating Inspiration, Education & Activationfor personal and collective change in the world. Layla's work is driven by a powerful desire to become a good ancestor; to live and work in ways that leave a legacy of healing and liberation, especially for black girls and black women.

Layla is unapologetically confronting the oppressive systems of white supremacy and patriarchy, while offering important teachings and tools for transforming consciousness, cultivating personal anti-racism practice and taking responsibility for our individual and collective healing.

The Young Reader's edition is now available to pre-order!

How do we give young people the tools they need to actively dismantle racism and create a better world for everyone?
From the author of the groundbreaking NEW YORK TIMES and SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER, Me and White Supremacy, Layla Saad's young readers' edition is a timely, crucial, and empowering guide for today's youth on how to be antiracist change makers.

Me and White Supremacy has reached so many adults in their journeys to become better ancestors. This edition aims to teach readers how to explore and understand racism and white supremacy and how young readers can do their part to help change the world. Covering topics such as white privilege, white fragility, racist stereotypes, cultural appropriation, and more, Layla Saad has developed a brilliant introduction and deep dive that is sure to become a standard in antiracist education.

WEEKLY LETTERS FROM LAYLA ON RACE, IDENTITY, LEADERSHIP, PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION, SOCIAL CHANGE, HOPE, AND BEING A GOOD ANCESTOR

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LAYLA F. SAAD :: Author. Speaker. Teacher.

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Not everyone has the access to mental health support and services that's right for them. We are working hard to make sure this is not the case. Throughout our history, we have supported people facing multiple forms of discrimination, such as discrimination because of their mental health problems as well as their ethnicity, race, religion, sexuality or disability. Find out more here about our current and past projects.

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Not everyone has the access to mental health support and services that's right for them. We are working hard to make sure this is not the case. Throughout our history, we have supported people facing multiple forms of discrimination, such as discrimination because of their mental health problems as well as their ethnicity, race, religion, sexuality or disability.

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https://www.imkaan.org.uk/resources

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Informed by the direct needs of the sector, our research improves service delivery and highlights good practice.

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https://gal-dem.com/

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An award winning media company committed to sharing the perspectives of people of colour from marginalised genders

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ARTICLE: Super Complaint into Police Failures of Black and Minoritised Survivors 

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ARTICLE: Super Complaint into Police Failures of Black and Minoritised Survivors 

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https://inews.co.uk/news/uk/super-complaint-raised-failures-black-minority-ethnic-survivors-sexual-abuse-rape-900829

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A survey of 500 rape survivors in 2020 found that just 14 per cent believed they would receive justice by reporting the crime to the police (Photo: Gulsan Khan/Getty)

Severe failures by police in England and Wales to support black and minority ethnic victims of sexual abuse have led to the first ever so-called "super-complaint" to address the issue.

Testimonials from victims, academics and specialist support workers highlight the institutional discrimination felt by many when they report allegations of sexual abuse.

The super-complaint system - which allows designated organisations to raise issues on behalf of the public - is designed to identify whether there is a problem with policing that could harm the public, and find a solution if that is proved to be the case.

This particular super-complaint highlights the tens of thousands of victims and survivors who have had to fight for access to professional support that should be routinely offered.

The Tees Valley Inclusion Project and the Halo Project, a charity that supports victims of so-called honour-based violence, forced marriage and Female Genital Mutilation, have contributed to the report.

Yasmin Khan, chief executive of the Halo Project, said the super-complaint is "the biggest wake up call" to ensure police reform takes place.

Ms Khan told : "It has been 22 years since the Macpherson Report set out specific recommendations to address institutional racism in the police. But we still see unfair treatment to black and minority ethnic communities because the police service is not representative or in touch with local communities.

"Victims do not want preferential treatment or extra resources. The police must uphold their public duty to protect all communities, not just some sections of the public. We look forward to the implementation of recommendations from this report."

Confidence in the police and Crown Prosecution Service came under fresh scrutiny last year after a survey of 500 rape survivors found that just 14 per cent believed they would receive justice by reporting the crime to the police.

It followed news that there were 55,000 reports of rape to the police in 2019-20, yet only 1,867 cases charged.

Nazir Afzal OBE, the former chief prosecutor of north-west England who was initiated the prosecution of a sex trafficking gang in Rochdale, said the super-complaint is "critical" to instilling confidence in victims and ensuring no one is "left behind".

He added: "Tens of thousands have suffered in silence without the support they desperately need."

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, the Independent Office for Police Conduct and the College of Policing will jointly investigate the super-complaint and report their findings at a later date.

'I felt the police did not listen to me'

Nadia*, 35, was subject to hate crimes in her community after her six-year-old daughter was raped. Nadia, who is of Pakistani descent, said police did not link the reprisals. Her case is among the super-complaint. Her daughter's abuser was convicted and jailed.

She told i : "It's every parent's worst nightmare. I went to the police with a very serious complaint, and I felt they didn't listen to me. I was made to repeat the trauma every time I visited the police station and it was frustrating.

"After the trial, the court recommended the police provide support to me and my daughter. But I felt they backed away. Had the Halo Project not followed up on our behalf, my daughter would still be waiting to access the aftercare.

"There were repercussions for going to the authorities; my daughter's traumatic experience was gossiped about. I was a victim of hate crime. I have been shunned and accused of bringing shame on my family, but I just wanted justice for my daughter.

"People said I should have 'sorted it out' instead of going to the police. I was taunted daily. I reported each incident to the police, and they did not link the reprisals with my daughter's case. This happened while she was undergoing therapy. It was too much for me to bear.

"I wish I was listened to. I wish the police had considered the cultural significance of what was happening in our community. I'm very hurt inside."

*Name has been changed

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'Super-complaint' raised over severe police failures to BAME survivors of sexual abuse

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Severe failures by police in England and Wales to support black and minority ethnic victims of sexual abuse have led to the first ever so-called "super-complaint" to address the issue. Testimonials from victims, academics and specialist support workers highlight the institutional discrimination felt by many when they report allegations of sexual abuse.

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http://www.avaduvernay.com/13th/

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https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000k7k0

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Analysis - Radical Self-Care - 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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ARTICLE: How to Promote an Anti-Racist Culture in Social Work 

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ARTICLE: How to Promote an Anti-Racist Culture in Social Work 

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https://www.communitycare.co.uk/2020/07/17/promote-anti-racist-culture-social-work/

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By Wayne Reid, BASW England professional officer and social worker

Following the constructive feedback received on my article on UK social work's response to the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, I've been ruminating about clear actions that social work educators, employers and key stakeholders can take to promote anti-racism.

My aim in this article is to outline some practical (and skeletal) ideas for social work organisations to consider. I will use the terms people of colour (POC) and Black and ethnic minority interchangeably for ease. Again, I write this article from my own viewpoint, not on behalf of all Black and ethnic minority people or social workers - as we are not a homogenous group.

Also, I'm by no means an expert in organisational development/leadership, but I do consider myself as an 'expert with lived experience' of personal and professional racism in life and in social work. These are purely my opinions.For other perspectives, I would recommend Dr Gurnham Singh(@gurnamskhela), Hari Sewell (@consultancy_hs), Guilaine Kinouani (@kguilaine) and Dr Muna Abdi (@muna_abdi_phd).

Black and ethnic minority social workers should not be expected to 'fix' racism

Black and ethnic minority social workers cannot and should not be expected to 'fix' the racism in their workplace. However, those of us who are confident and capable enough (with the right support) can have a crucial role in educating, empowering and equipping ourselves and (potential) allies and influencers to enhance and shape anti-racism initiatives in our workplace settings.

EVERYONE has a duty to combat racism (and other forms of discrimination) in the spaces they occupy. This includes reporting racist incidents when they occur; forming like-minded alliances with peers to tackle key issues; raising awareness and making suggestions for positive reform.

Typical organisational responses to tackling anti-racism

From my cultured social work experience, the responses below generally indicate an organisation's prioritisation and level of commitment (or not) to anti-racism. However, before any meaningful change can be achieved, social work educators and employers must acknowledge the inherent and intrinsic nature of 'whiteness', 'White fragility', 'White privilege' and white supremacy as subconscious default positions in most (if not all) institutions, structures and organisational cultures. Individual and organisational awareness is an imperative first step for social workers, social work employers and social work educators to address workplace racism effectively. In the words of the American political activist, Angela Davis:

In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist. We must be anti-racist."

Broadly, there are three typical organisational responses when attempting to tackle racial inequality:

1. Keep silent, keep things the same and "hope all this Black Lives Matter (BLM) 'stuff' just blows over". This kind of inaction and paralysis of fear correlates with and reinforces perceptions of 'White fragility', 'White privilege' and white supremacy for some POC. This type of organisational response usually commends staff for being resilient and deflects attention away from the essential redesign of systems that routinely make people suffer.

2. Publish lukewarm organisational statements that recycle and regurgitate previous rhetoric on workforce unity with predictable (and borderline offensive) platitudes - often proposing only superficial changes. For example, publishing a sympathetic, but non-committal kneejerk brief statement; possibly delegating responsibilities to an already overworked equalities officer or proposing minor changes to already vague policies/procedures on 'valuing diversity' with little or no accountability. Approaches at this level are usually well-intended, but tokenistic and overlook the nuanced obstacles and pitfalls POC face every day. Unfortunately, this response is common.

3. Publish an authentic anti-racism action plan, outlining significant reforms that commit to specific, measurable, achievable and realistic targets (suggestions below). Examples include publishing a strong mission/position statement condemning George Floyd's murder and racism in all its forms and committing to the British Association of Social Workers's code of ethics, anti-oppressive, anti-discriminatory and anti-racist practice. This approach interlinks with the Anti-racist Commitment Framework I have developed.

The acid test is to share this article with your social work leaders and see what response you get.

Covert, entrenched and everyday racism in the workplace

If the recent news of police officers taking 'selfies' beside the bodies of two murdered black sisters; the recent far-right violent protests in London or the racist comments by Suffolk councillors do not outrage you or alert you to the fact that racism is thriving in this country right now - then you really need to consider whether you have sleepwalked into being an opponent of anti-racism. At the very least, we must be self-aware and honest (with ourselves and others) when our boredom threshold is reached. This can be subliminal and counterproductive to anti-racism at every level. Everyday micro-aggressions (including 'banter' in the workplace) can fuel violent racist incidents.

The covert, entrenched and everyday racism in the workplace sometimes indicates the lack of good-quality cultural diversity and multicultural education and training available (to all staff). Surprisingly, it is rarely acknowledged in social work that race is simply a socially constructed idea with no scientific validity - invented and refined principally to oppress POC.

This has modern and everyday ramifications in the working environment. During the coronavirus pandemic, I have been told by Black and ethnic minority practitioners about personal protective equipment (PPE) being prioritised or withheld on occasions for white colleagues, and being made to visit service users with suspected Covid-19 with no PPE, guidance or support, whilst white managers stayed at the office with 'their' supply of PPE and engaged in racist banter.

These perverse experiences can be impossible for victims of 'naked and slippery' everyday racism to articulate to others or reconcile internally themselves. Furthermore, these incidents are normalised and subsumed in many workplace cultures, with limited opportunities to 'professionally offload'. In some cases, it's really not hard to see who the direct descendants of slaveowners are. With some people, it stands out like a beacon, regardless of what they say and do.

What 'Black Lives Matter' means

As outlined in my previous article, there is a long history of atrocities and brutalities endured by Black and ethnic minority people globally. 'Black Lives Matter' is an acknowledgment that our lives need to matter more than they have, that society should apportion them equal weighting. That is why the retort of 'White' or 'All' Lives Matter in response to BLM is not really comparable or relevant.

Would it be right to ask: "What about colon cancer?" during a discussion about breast cancer? Or advise a bereaved mother that 'all lives matter' at her child's funeral? "Save the whales" does not mean other sea life is unimportant. This is not complex stuff and just requires us to revitalise our basic human qualities - compassion, empathy and humanity. Factually, unlike the lives of Black and ethnic minority people, white lives have always mattered. So, to keep proclaiming 'White lives matter' adds excessive value to them, tilting us further towards white supremacy. In hard times, surely it is right to protect and support certain groups - particularly vulnerable ones. This does not devalue, disadvantage or discredit any other groups; it just raises general awareness and improves the support available to specific groups that require immediate attention. BLM has its critics, but it is unclear why a movement that promotes equality is demonised by some people who vehemently claim they are not 'a' racist.

Anti-racism in social work must be fully considered and dismantled through collaboration with Black and ethnic minority social workers in roles as experts with (personal and professional) lived experience. This is the only way that Black and ethnic minority social workers' basic needs can be properly met and their wide-ranging expertise fully utilised. Of course, this approach can only improve the experiences of Black and ethnic minority service users too.

It really is just a question of how much of a priority anti-racism is in social work.

So, how can social work employers implement 'anti-racist practice' in the workplace?

What might an anti-racist working environment look like? What can social work employers do to promote anti-racism in the workplace? What would the experience be like for Black and ethnic minority social workers? Here is my vision of how this might work in reality.
Recruitment
Anti-racist recruitment targets are set to employ Black and ethnic minority senior leaders and educators to better reflect local communities and the workforce (where necessary/possible).

The 'Rooney Rule' is adopted, similar to senior recruitment in American National Football League.This involves at least one POC candidate being interviewed for each senior leader vacancy.
Operations
Anti-racism is explicitly promoted in mission/position statements (this is a good example) along with other forms of anti-discrimination, included in relevant polices/procedures and forms part of employees' employment contracts to underline its importance.

The data on workforce diversity and 'protected characteristics' (ethnicity, gender, religion, sexuality etc) informs the support available for minority groups, training for all staff and organisational policies and procedures. The workforce is encouraged to self-declare their identity and individual/group wellbeing at work provisions are developed in partnership with them. Creative wellbeing at work provisions are developed for those who have experienced workplace trauma associated with racism (and other types of discrimination). This includes peer-led support groups for members to reflect fully on their personal and professional experiences. Personal wellbeing is a mandatory agenda item for supervision meetings.

By using this 'identity dashboard' approach, organisational efforts are more focused and genuine; progress is properly managed through a cycle of reviewing data output and periodic verbal/written feedback from the workforce.

Safe and informal systems are introduced for Black and ethnic minority social workers in the workplace. For example, discriminatory practices and constructive solutions are reported anonymously in an 'honesty box' to empower POC without fear of reprisals. Arising issues are then explored in supervision, team meetings or with senior leaders (if necessary).

Annual ethnicity pay audits ensure that any anomalies and discrepancies for Black and ethnic minority staff are properly reviewed and resolved.

The Covid-19 risk assessment is consistently used for all staff (particularly those from Black and ethnic minority groups).
Education
Anti-racist education is recognised as being at the heart of developing a more cultured and inclusive workforce and healthy workplace. Education providers 'decolonialise' social work training programmes with the input of Black and ethnic minority academics, social workers and service users integrated at all stages of programme development and delivery.

Anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive and anti-racist practice form a fundamental and mandatory requirement of social workers' professional development and registration. This includes a range of educational tools and training opportunities (for different learning styles) to ensure good-quality cultural diversity education is prioritised and valued. Staff continuously learn and better understand microaggressions, stereotypes and how they can demonstrate 'anti-racist practice'.

The expertise of specialist external trainers and consultants is instrumental in shaping effective anti-racist approaches - with no reliance on tokenistic online courses.

Here are some additional resources for anti-racist education:
Allyship
Anti-racist allyship is understood by senior leaders, educators and practitioners to be vital in combating all manifestations of racism. Educating, empowering and equipping allies to actively support colleagues from marginalised and minority groups is common practice.

Allyship actively promotes ways in which managers and staff can become allies or become better allies to support their Black and ethnic minority colleagues. Social work employers and educators demonstrate they are willing to keep listening and learning from POC to instigate any meaningful change.
Reverse mentoring
Anti-racist 'reverse-mentoring' enables Black and ethnic minority social workers to mentor senior leaders and educators on anti-racism (especially those with identified 'anti-racist needs'). It is important reverse-mentoring allows mentors some autonomy in their approach. Furthermore, mentoring agreements (considering confidentiality, power dynamics and conflict resolution) are agreed and signed by both parties at the outset.
Leadership programmes
To combat 'glass-ceiling racism', various professional development opportunities are available designed to provide advice/support colleagues from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds to enhance their career progression.

'Positive representation' recognises the disadvantages and obstacles for POC and provides opportunities ( mentoring, nominations, secondments, shadowing etc) to support them in reaching their full potential.

Due to the representational imbalance, ring-fenced investment and operational resources to support leadership programmes should be put in place. This addresses the lack of Black and ethnic minority social workers in senior roles and provides support for those who are.

Unsurprisingly, I cannot be detailed or too prescriptive above due to limited space. Also, the demographics/dynamics in each work setting will vary. However, my suggestions can be cross-referenced with the Anti-racist Commitment Framework. The framework provides more detail on: accelerating diversity; educating, empowering and equipping people; leading by example and building transparency. The framework is also compatible with BASW's code of ethics, working conditions wellbeing toolkit and mentoring scheme.

Ok, so what needs to happen nationally?

The existing national frameworks and initiatives to support Black and ethnic minority social workers are fragmented and optional. This can create confusion and dilution in their coherence and implementation in practice. Social work has a long history of committing to anti-discriminatory practice, but less in the way of practical mandatory implementation or robust challenge on these issues.

Now is the time for the profession to properly address this. I (and no doubt many others) would welcome the prioritisation of sector leaders (including the chief social workers, Social Work England, directors of adult social services and children's services and other key stakeholders) to meaningfully and purposefully move this agenda forward to establish a mandatory 'anti-discriminatory national framework' that is universal across social work - in collaboration with BASW.

An important first step, would be to explicitly reintroduce anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive practices and anti-racist values and ethics into the professional and qualifying education and training standards. This new regime should involve partnership working between key stakeholders to enforce these values and ethics across the professional landscape. Key aims/objectives would be to: ensure consistency, introduce mandatory requirements, emphasise 'anti-racist' values and be universally applicable to all social workers like the professional capabilities framework and the professional standards.

We all know that organisations can sometimes be avoidant of anti-racism, but as social workers we must recognise that silence (or inaction) on racism is complicity with the oppressors. Unfortunately, as a profession we have been complacent and have much more to do to cultivate equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace and society.

BASW England is able to provide advice and support, facilitate consultation and deliver training (where possible) to assist social work organisations in implementing the above approach and embedding the Anti-racist Commitment Framework. For social workers, there are various opportunities through BASW to develop your expertise in this area with our equality, diversity and inclusion group, events, branch meetings and training programmes.

Also, BASW England will be leading a Black and ethnic professionals symposium (BPS) for BASW members from 23 July 2020 and a forthcoming anthology, so do contact me at wayne.reid@basw.co.uk or @wayne_reid79 - if you are interested in any of these initiatives. Many of you will also be aware of our campaign to change the imagery on the KCMG medal and our open letter to the Queen. BASW will not remain silent on this issue and we implore you to do the same.

Committing to anti-racism

I sincerely hope this article resonates with those with power and influence within social work to rigorously combat racism by integrating a mandatory Anti-racist Commitment Framework. I am confident that this will embed anti-racist values and ethics into practice (not just theory). Also, I also hope anti-oppressive and anti-discriminatory practice can be reaffirmed generally, as sadly, these have slid off the agenda significantly in recent years.

As a footnote, section 95 the Criminal Justice Act 1991 requires the government to publish information to help the criminal justice system meet its duty to avoid discrimination on the grounds of race, gender or any other improper ground. This is a powerful tool, possibly under-used, by Black and ethnic minority professionals and white officers (allies) who identify racism. This has the potential of legislative support for operational staff who raise the issue of racist practices (where perceived).

Let's not forget, "when you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression". The only real enemy of progress is ignorance. Social justice must prevail.

'One world, one race... the human race!'

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How to promote an anti-racist culture in social work

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By Wayne Reid, BASW England professional officer and social worker Following the constructive feedback received on my article on UK social work's response to the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, I've been ruminating about clear actions that social work educators, employers and key stakeholders can take to promote anti-racism.

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A Decolonized Podcast for lovers on the margins, join your resident sexuality educator Ericka Hart and Deep East Oakland's very own Ebony Donnley, as we game give, dismantle white supremacy and kiki in the cosmos somewhere between radical hood epistemological black queer love ethics, pop culture, house plants and a sea of books.

Light an incense to this. #nigchampa #hrhw #theblackpoweredpodcast

To monetarily support Hoodrat to Headwrap Venmo @Ericka-Hart or PayPal: ericka@ihartericka.com

A Decolonized Podcast for lovers on the margins, join your resident sexuality educator Ericka Hart and Deep East Oakland's very own Ebony Donnley, as we game give, dismantle white supremacy and kiki in the cosmos somewhere between radical hood epistemological black queer love ethics, pop culture, house plants and a sea of books.

Light an incense to this. #nigchampa #hrhw #theblackpoweredpodcast

To monetarily support Hoodrat to Headwrap Venmo @Ericka-Hart or PayPal: ericka@ihartericka.com

the best!!!

thank u for taking the time❤️💕❤️💕❤️💕❤️

Mind Expanding

I've never seen The Matrix so I'm not sure which color the pill is that allows you to see the world as it really is and not just the illusory "reality" you've been living in (that's the gist of The Matrix, right?) - but listening to the Election episode made me feel like I could see and understand the US as it really is (opposed to the way I was brainwashed to believe it is). "Connecting the dots" as Ericka says. Also, The links!!!! Ericka and Ebony are providing an Education - paid my tuition via Venmo. Thank you!!

Such a joyful and critical space!!

I'm learning so much from this podcast! Ericka and Ebony are amazing and will guaranteed make you laugh! :-) <3

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hoodrat to headwrap: a decolonized podcast

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‎Hoodrat to Headwrap: A Decolonized Podcast on Apple Podcasts

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‎A Decolonized Podcast for lovers on the margins, join your resident sexuality educator Ericka Hart and Deep East Oakland's very own Ebony Donnley, as we game give, dismantle white supremacy and kiki in the cosmos somewhere between radical hood epistemological black queer love ethics, pop culture, ho...

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https://www.muslimfeminist.co.uk/about

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I was born in Baghdad and left Iraq at the age of two. I have travelled the Middle East throughout my childhood eventually settling in the UK in 1988. Growing up in a family context where political activism and faith were the staples of life, I grew up with an acute understanding of the different ways and layers at which faith, politics and organised religion interact and influence each other, the individual and society.

I graduated with combined Honours Degree in Sociology and Psychology from Roehampton University and a Masters in International Studies and Diplomacy from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. I hold a PTTLS Level 4 Certificate and I am a qualified National Women's Aid trainer in Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence.

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I was born in Baghdad and left Iraq at the age of two. I have travelled the Middle East throughout my childhood eventually settling in the UK in 1988.

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http://mariamekaba.com/

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My name is Mariame Kaba. I'm an organizer, educator and curator. My work focuses on ending violence, dismantling the prison industrial complex, transformative justice and supporting youth leadership development. After over 20 years of living and organizing in Chicago, I moved back to my hometown of New York City in May 2016.

I am the founder and director of Project NIA, a grassroots organization with a vision to end youth incarceration. Prior to starting NIA, I worked as a program officer for education and youth development at the Steans Family Foundation where I focused on grantmaking and program evaluation.

I have co-founded multiple organizations and projects over the years including the Chicago Freedom School, the Chicago Taskforce on Violence against Girls and Young Women, the Chicago Alliance to Free Marissa Alexander and the Rogers Park Young Women's Action Team (YWAT) among others. I have also served on numerous nonprofit boards.

I have extensive experience working on issues of racial justice, gender justice, transformative/restorative justice and multiple forms of violence. I have been active in the anti gender-based violence movement since 1989. My experience includes coordinating emergency shelter services at Sanctuary for Families in New York City, serving as the co-chair of the Women of Color Committee at the Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women's Network, working as the prevention and education manager at Friends of Battered Women and their Children (now called Between Friends), serving on the founding advisory board of the Women and Girls Collective Action Network (WGCAN), and being a member of Incite! Women of Color Against Violence. I co-founded and currently organize with the Survived and Punished collective and am a founding member of the Just Practice Collaborative.

I served as a member of the editorial board of Violence Against Women: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal from January 2003 to December 2008. I am the co-editor (along with Michelle VanNatta) of a special issue of the journal about teen girls' experiences of and resistance to violence published in December 2007. I have written and co-authored reports, articles, essays, curricula, zines, and more. I am currently an active board member of the Black Scholar. I run the blog Prison Culture. In 2018, I co-authored the guidebook " Lifting As They Climbed" and published a children's book titled " Missing Daddy." My current book, We Do This Til We Free Us: Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice, was published by Haymarket Press in February 2021 and was a New York Times Bestseller.

I was a member and co-founder of We Charge Genocide, an inter-generational effort which documented police brutality and violence in Chicago and sent youth organizers to Geneva, Switzerland to present their report to the United Nations Committee Against Torture. I am an advisory board member of Chicago Torture Justice Memorials, a group (along with Project NIA and WCG) that worked to get the Chicago City Council to pass a reparations law providing restitution to the victims of Jon Burge, a police commander who tortured more than 200 criminal suspects, most of them black men, from the 1970s through the early 1990s.

I am a founding advisory board member of the Chicago Community Bond Fund. The CCBF pays bond for people charged with crimes in Cook County, Illinois. Through a revolving fund, CCBF supports individuals whose communities cannot afford to pay the bonds themselves and who have been impacted by structural violence. I am also a member of Critical Resistance's community advisory board. Critical Resistance's vision is the creation of genuinely healthy, stable communities that respond to harm without relying on imprisonment and punishment.

I was a 2016-2017 Soros Justice Fellow where I extended and expanded my work to end the criminalization of survivors of violence. In 2020, I was awarded a Lannan Cultural Freedom Fellowship.

I was a with Andrea J. Ritchie, fellow Researcher-in-Residence, on a new initiative called researcher in residence on Race, Gender, Sexuality and Criminalization at the Social Justice Institute of the Barnard Center for Research on Women from 2018-2020. During this time, I co-founded and worked with Interrupting Criminalization: Research in Action.

I am currently working as a researcher at Interrupting Criminalization: Research in Action with Andrea J. Ritchie. Combining participatory research, data analysis, and systemic advocacy, Andrea and I will work in partnership with local campaigns to identify primary pathways, policing practices, charges, and points of intervention to address the growing criminalization and incarceration of women and LGBTQ people of color for public order, survival, drug, child welfare and self-defense related offenses. Research will be disseminated in accessible formats for use by organizers, advocates, policymakers, media makers, and philanthropic partners working to interrupt criminalization at the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality. This initiative hosts convenings of researchers, organizers, advocates, policymakers, and philanthropic partners on key topics relating to violence and criminalization, and support partners in developing and implementing campaigns designed to interrupt criminalization of women, girls, trans and GNC people of color.

I have a long history in the fields of education and youth development, having taught high school and college students in New York and Chicago. I've taught sociology and Black studies courses at Northeastern Illinois University, Northwestern University, and Columbia University. I have developed and facilitated many workshops and presented at events. I was a founding board member of the Education for Liberation Network.

I studied sociology at McGill University, City College of New York, and Northwestern University. I am currently pursuing a degree in Library and Information Science. I have received several honors and awards for my work over the years. I am occasionally available to consult on various topics.

This is my personal website. Welcome. If you would like to contact me, email jjinjustice1@gmail.com.

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My name is Mariame Kaba. I'm an organizer, educator and curator. My work focuses on ending violence, dismantling the prison industrial complex, transformative justice and supporting youth leadership development. After over 20 years of living and organizing in Chicago, I moved back to my hometown of New York City in May 2016.

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Analysis - Radical Self-Care - 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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https://www.ukblackpride.org.uk/

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● UK Black Pride is thrilled to announce that UK Black Pride co-founder and executive director Phyll Opoku-Gyimah (Lady Phyll) has been appointed Chief Executive, effective 1 January 2024. ● She leaves her role as Executive Director of international LGBTQI+ human rights charity Kaleidoscope Trust, where her strategic vision, leadership and fundraising has sustained the charity during global funding cuts for civil society organisations working to uphold LGBTQI+ human rights. ● As Chief Executive of UK Black Pride, Lady Phyll will grow UK Black Pride's year-round offering, including programmatic and funding interventions to uplift, empower and support the UK's diverse LGBTQI+ communities.
Thursday, 16 November 2023 - UK Black Pride, the world's largest free Black pride celebration, today announces that Phyll Opoku-Gyimah (Lady Phyll) has been appointed the organisation's first-ever Chief Executive. Lady Phyll's leadership and stewardship of UK Black Pride over 18 years as executive director has been a voluntary and unpaid commitment. The decision to create and fund the role of full-time Chief Executive comes after tremendous and sustained growth of UK Black Pride's annual pride celebration, and in response to UK Black Pride's communities asking for the organisation to offer more year-round events, spaces and opportunities for connection. She takes up the role of Chief Executive of UK Black Pride from 1 January 2024.

Already a highly-respected leader with a formidable resume, Lady Phyll has spent the past five years as the Executive Director of international LGBTQI+ human rights charity Kaleidoscope Trust. Since taking on the role, the team at Kaleidoscope Trust has more than doubled in size, and the charity has increased its reach to support more than 45 organisations in 36 countries working to ensure freedom, safety and equality for LGBTI+ people. Under her leadership, Kaleidoscope Trust grew even during the Covid-19 crisis, during which the charity distributed over £300,000 in grants to LGBTQI+ civil society organisations to keep their vital equality work going at a time of increased uncertainty and alarming increases in homo- and transphobic violence - in the UK and across the Commonwealth.

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● UK Black Pride is thrilled to announce that UK Black Pride co-founder and executive director Phyll Opoku-Gyimah (Lady Phyll) has been appointed Chief Executive, effective 1 January 2024. ● She leaves her role as Executive Director of international LGBTQI+ human rights charity Kaleidoscope Trust, where her strategic vision, leadership and fundraising has sustained the charity during global funding cuts for civil society organisations working to uphold LGBTQI+ human rights.

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https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0499smp

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Bold, vibrant, provocative stories exploring what it means to be black in Britain today.

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In a dystopian London, Sephy and Callum fall in love despite the odds.

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TALK: BLACK FEMINISM AND THE MOVEMENT FOR BLACK LIVES

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TALK: BLACK FEMINISM AND THE MOVEMENT FOR BLACK LIVES

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Black Feminism & the Movement for Black Lives: Barbara Smith, Reina Gossett, Charlene Carruthers

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A series of films about the black British experience, directed by Steve McQueen.

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VIDEO: BLM CO FOUNDER ALICIA GARZA IN CONVERSATION WITH ANGELA DAVIS

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VIDEO: BLM CO FOUNDER ALICIA GARZA IN CONVERSATION WITH ANGELA DAVIS

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Angela Davis & BLM Co-Founder Alicia Garza in Conversation across Generations

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PODCAST: About Race with Reni Eddo Lodge

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PODCAST: About Race with Reni Eddo Lodge

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https://www.aboutracepodcast.com/

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This domain has expired. If you owned this domain, contact your domain registration service provider for further assistance. If you need help identifying your provider, visit https://www.tucowsdomains.com/

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aboutracepodcast.com is your first and best source for all of the information you’re looking for. From general topics to more of what you would expect to find here, aboutracepodcast.com has it all. We hope you find what you are searching for!

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https://www.pbs.org/show/film-school-shorts-program/collections/black-history-month/

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Black History Month Collection | Film School Shorts | PBS

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Adjust the colors to reduce glare and give your eyes a break.

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https://www.waterstones.com/book/natives/akala/9781473661233

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https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13214.I_Know_Why_the_Caged_Bird_Sings

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When I picked up I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou I knew two things:

1. The author is friends with Oprah and the Clintons.
2. The book is considered a classic.

The book is mostly set in the tiny town of Stamps, Arkansas. I lived much of my childhood within an hour's drive of Stamps so I found that detail very interesting.

The account of life as a Negro (the term Ms. Angelou uses) in rural Arkansas was fascinating. Some of it brought to mind memories of my own childhood (though I am "l...more

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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #1)

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When I picked up I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou I knew two things: 1. The author is friends with Oprah and the Clintons.2. The book is considered a classic. The book is mostly set in the tiny town of Stamps, Arkansas.

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Informed by the direct needs of the sector, our research improves service delivery and highlights good practice.

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ARTICLE: HOW TO PROMOTE AN ANTI-RACIST CULTURE IN SOCIAL WORK 

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ARTICLE: HOW TO PROMOTE AN ANTI-RACIST CULTURE IN SOCIAL WORK 

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By Wayne Reid, BASW England professional officer and social worker

Following the constructive feedback received on my article on UK social work's response to the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, I've been ruminating about clear actions that social work educators, employers and key stakeholders can take to promote anti-racism.

My aim in this article is to outline some practical (and skeletal) ideas for social work organisations to consider. I will use the terms people of colour (POC) and Black and ethnic minority interchangeably for ease. Again, I write this article from my own viewpoint, not on behalf of all Black and ethnic minority people or social workers - as we are not a homogenous group.

Also, I'm by no means an expert in organisational development/leadership, but I do consider myself as an 'expert with lived experience' of personal and professional racism in life and in social work. These are purely my opinions.For other perspectives, I would recommend Dr Gurnham Singh(@gurnamskhela), Hari Sewell (@consultancy_hs), Guilaine Kinouani (@kguilaine) and Dr Muna Abdi (@muna_abdi_phd).

Black and ethnic minority social workers should not be expected to 'fix' racism

Black and ethnic minority social workers cannot and should not be expected to 'fix' the racism in their workplace. However, those of us who are confident and capable enough (with the right support) can have a crucial role in educating, empowering and equipping ourselves and (potential) allies and influencers to enhance and shape anti-racism initiatives in our workplace settings.

EVERYONE has a duty to combat racism (and other forms of discrimination) in the spaces they occupy. This includes reporting racist incidents when they occur; forming like-minded alliances with peers to tackle key issues; raising awareness and making suggestions for positive reform.

Typical organisational responses to tackling anti-racism

From my cultured social work experience, the responses below generally indicate an organisation's prioritisation and level of commitment (or not) to anti-racism. However, before any meaningful change can be achieved, social work educators and employers must acknowledge the inherent and intrinsic nature of 'whiteness', 'White fragility', 'White privilege' and white supremacy as subconscious default positions in most (if not all) institutions, structures and organisational cultures. Individual and organisational awareness is an imperative first step for social workers, social work employers and social work educators to address workplace racism effectively. In the words of the American political activist, Angela Davis:

In a racist society, it is not enough to be non-racist. We must be anti-racist."

Broadly, there are three typical organisational responses when attempting to tackle racial inequality:

1. Keep silent, keep things the same and "hope all this Black Lives Matter (BLM) 'stuff' just blows over". This kind of inaction and paralysis of fear correlates with and reinforces perceptions of 'White fragility', 'White privilege' and white supremacy for some POC. This type of organisational response usually commends staff for being resilient and deflects attention away from the essential redesign of systems that routinely make people suffer.

2. Publish lukewarm organisational statements that recycle and regurgitate previous rhetoric on workforce unity with predictable (and borderline offensive) platitudes - often proposing only superficial changes. For example, publishing a sympathetic, but non-committal kneejerk brief statement; possibly delegating responsibilities to an already overworked equalities officer or proposing minor changes to already vague policies/procedures on 'valuing diversity' with little or no accountability. Approaches at this level are usually well-intended, but tokenistic and overlook the nuanced obstacles and pitfalls POC face every day. Unfortunately, this response is common.

3. Publish an authentic anti-racism action plan, outlining significant reforms that commit to specific, measurable, achievable and realistic targets (suggestions below). Examples include publishing a strong mission/position statement condemning George Floyd's murder and racism in all its forms and committing to the British Association of Social Workers's code of ethics, anti-oppressive, anti-discriminatory and anti-racist practice. This approach interlinks with the Anti-racist Commitment Framework I have developed.

The acid test is to share this article with your social work leaders and see what response you get.

Covert, entrenched and everyday racism in the workplace

If the recent news of police officers taking 'selfies' beside the bodies of two murdered black sisters; the recent far-right violent protests in London or the racist comments by Suffolk councillors do not outrage you or alert you to the fact that racism is thriving in this country right now - then you really need to consider whether you have sleepwalked into being an opponent of anti-racism. At the very least, we must be self-aware and honest (with ourselves and others) when our boredom threshold is reached. This can be subliminal and counterproductive to anti-racism at every level. Everyday micro-aggressions (including 'banter' in the workplace) can fuel violent racist incidents.

The covert, entrenched and everyday racism in the workplace sometimes indicates the lack of good-quality cultural diversity and multicultural education and training available (to all staff). Surprisingly, it is rarely acknowledged in social work that race is simply a socially constructed idea with no scientific validity - invented and refined principally to oppress POC.

This has modern and everyday ramifications in the working environment. During the coronavirus pandemic, I have been told by Black and ethnic minority practitioners about personal protective equipment (PPE) being prioritised or withheld on occasions for white colleagues, and being made to visit service users with suspected Covid-19 with no PPE, guidance or support, whilst white managers stayed at the office with 'their' supply of PPE and engaged in racist banter.

These perverse experiences can be impossible for victims of 'naked and slippery' everyday racism to articulate to others or reconcile internally themselves. Furthermore, these incidents are normalised and subsumed in many workplace cultures, with limited opportunities to 'professionally offload'. In some cases, it's really not hard to see who the direct descendants of slaveowners are. With some people, it stands out like a beacon, regardless of what they say and do.

What 'Black Lives Matter' means

As outlined in my previous article, there is a long history of atrocities and brutalities endured by Black and ethnic minority people globally. 'Black Lives Matter' is an acknowledgment that our lives need to matter more than they have, that society should apportion them equal weighting. That is why the retort of 'White' or 'All' Lives Matter in response to BLM is not really comparable or relevant.

Would it be right to ask: "What about colon cancer?" during a discussion about breast cancer? Or advise a bereaved mother that 'all lives matter' at her child's funeral? "Save the whales" does not mean other sea life is unimportant. This is not complex stuff and just requires us to revitalise our basic human qualities - compassion, empathy and humanity. Factually, unlike the lives of Black and ethnic minority people, white lives have always mattered. So, to keep proclaiming 'White lives matter' adds excessive value to them, tilting us further towards white supremacy. In hard times, surely it is right to protect and support certain groups - particularly vulnerable ones. This does not devalue, disadvantage or discredit any other groups; it just raises general awareness and improves the support available to specific groups that require immediate attention. BLM has its critics, but it is unclear why a movement that promotes equality is demonised by some people who vehemently claim they are not 'a' racist.

Anti-racism in social work must be fully considered and dismantled through collaboration with Black and ethnic minority social workers in roles as experts with (personal and professional) lived experience. This is the only way that Black and ethnic minority social workers' basic needs can be properly met and their wide-ranging expertise fully utilised. Of course, this approach can only improve the experiences of Black and ethnic minority service users too.

It really is just a question of how much of a priority anti-racism is in social work.

So, how can social work employers implement 'anti-racist practice' in the workplace?

What might an anti-racist working environment look like? What can social work employers do to promote anti-racism in the workplace? What would the experience be like for Black and ethnic minority social workers? Here is my vision of how this might work in reality.
Recruitment
Anti-racist recruitment targets are set to employ Black and ethnic minority senior leaders and educators to better reflect local communities and the workforce (where necessary/possible).

The 'Rooney Rule' is adopted, similar to senior recruitment in American National Football League.This involves at least one POC candidate being interviewed for each senior leader vacancy.
Operations
Anti-racism is explicitly promoted in mission/position statements (this is a good example) along with other forms of anti-discrimination, included in relevant polices/procedures and forms part of employees' employment contracts to underline its importance.

The data on workforce diversity and 'protected characteristics' (ethnicity, gender, religion, sexuality etc) informs the support available for minority groups, training for all staff and organisational policies and procedures. The workforce is encouraged to self-declare their identity and individual/group wellbeing at work provisions are developed in partnership with them. Creative wellbeing at work provisions are developed for those who have experienced workplace trauma associated with racism (and other types of discrimination). This includes peer-led support groups for members to reflect fully on their personal and professional experiences. Personal wellbeing is a mandatory agenda item for supervision meetings.

By using this 'identity dashboard' approach, organisational efforts are more focused and genuine; progress is properly managed through a cycle of reviewing data output and periodic verbal/written feedback from the workforce.

Safe and informal systems are introduced for Black and ethnic minority social workers in the workplace. For example, discriminatory practices and constructive solutions are reported anonymously in an 'honesty box' to empower POC without fear of reprisals. Arising issues are then explored in supervision, team meetings or with senior leaders (if necessary).

Annual ethnicity pay audits ensure that any anomalies and discrepancies for Black and ethnic minority staff are properly reviewed and resolved.

The Covid-19 risk assessment is consistently used for all staff (particularly those from Black and ethnic minority groups).
Education
Anti-racist education is recognised as being at the heart of developing a more cultured and inclusive workforce and healthy workplace. Education providers 'decolonialise' social work training programmes with the input of Black and ethnic minority academics, social workers and service users integrated at all stages of programme development and delivery.

Anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive and anti-racist practice form a fundamental and mandatory requirement of social workers' professional development and registration. This includes a range of educational tools and training opportunities (for different learning styles) to ensure good-quality cultural diversity education is prioritised and valued. Staff continuously learn and better understand microaggressions, stereotypes and how they can demonstrate 'anti-racist practice'.

The expertise of specialist external trainers and consultants is instrumental in shaping effective anti-racist approaches - with no reliance on tokenistic online courses.

Here are some additional resources for anti-racist education:
Allyship
Anti-racist allyship is understood by senior leaders, educators and practitioners to be vital in combating all manifestations of racism. Educating, empowering and equipping allies to actively support colleagues from marginalised and minority groups is common practice.

Allyship actively promotes ways in which managers and staff can become allies or become better allies to support their Black and ethnic minority colleagues. Social work employers and educators demonstrate they are willing to keep listening and learning from POC to instigate any meaningful change.
Reverse mentoring
Anti-racist 'reverse-mentoring' enables Black and ethnic minority social workers to mentor senior leaders and educators on anti-racism (especially those with identified 'anti-racist needs'). It is important reverse-mentoring allows mentors some autonomy in their approach. Furthermore, mentoring agreements (considering confidentiality, power dynamics and conflict resolution) are agreed and signed by both parties at the outset.
Leadership programmes
To combat 'glass-ceiling racism', various professional development opportunities are available designed to provide advice/support colleagues from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds to enhance their career progression.

'Positive representation' recognises the disadvantages and obstacles for POC and provides opportunities ( mentoring, nominations, secondments, shadowing etc) to support them in reaching their full potential.

Due to the representational imbalance, ring-fenced investment and operational resources to support leadership programmes should be put in place. This addresses the lack of Black and ethnic minority social workers in senior roles and provides support for those who are.

Unsurprisingly, I cannot be detailed or too prescriptive above due to limited space. Also, the demographics/dynamics in each work setting will vary. However, my suggestions can be cross-referenced with the Anti-racist Commitment Framework. The framework provides more detail on: accelerating diversity; educating, empowering and equipping people; leading by example and building transparency. The framework is also compatible with BASW's code of ethics, working conditions wellbeing toolkit and mentoring scheme.

Ok, so what needs to happen nationally?

The existing national frameworks and initiatives to support Black and ethnic minority social workers are fragmented and optional. This can create confusion and dilution in their coherence and implementation in practice. Social work has a long history of committing to anti-discriminatory practice, but less in the way of practical mandatory implementation or robust challenge on these issues.

Now is the time for the profession to properly address this. I (and no doubt many others) would welcome the prioritisation of sector leaders (including the chief social workers, Social Work England, directors of adult social services and children's services and other key stakeholders) to meaningfully and purposefully move this agenda forward to establish a mandatory 'anti-discriminatory national framework' that is universal across social work - in collaboration with BASW.

An important first step, would be to explicitly reintroduce anti-discriminatory, anti-oppressive practices and anti-racist values and ethics into the professional and qualifying education and training standards. This new regime should involve partnership working between key stakeholders to enforce these values and ethics across the professional landscape. Key aims/objectives would be to: ensure consistency, introduce mandatory requirements, emphasise 'anti-racist' values and be universally applicable to all social workers like the professional capabilities framework and the professional standards.

We all know that organisations can sometimes be avoidant of anti-racism, but as social workers we must recognise that silence (or inaction) on racism is complicity with the oppressors. Unfortunately, as a profession we have been complacent and have much more to do to cultivate equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace and society.

BASW England is able to provide advice and support, facilitate consultation and deliver training (where possible) to assist social work organisations in implementing the above approach and embedding the Anti-racist Commitment Framework. For social workers, there are various opportunities through BASW to develop your expertise in this area with our equality, diversity and inclusion group, events, branch meetings and training programmes.

Also, BASW England will be leading a Black and ethnic professionals symposium (BPS) for BASW members from 23 July 2020 and a forthcoming anthology, so do contact me at wayne.reid@basw.co.uk or @wayne_reid79 - if you are interested in any of these initiatives. Many of you will also be aware of our campaign to change the imagery on the KCMG medal and our open letter to the Queen. BASW will not remain silent on this issue and we implore you to do the same.

Committing to anti-racism

I sincerely hope this article resonates with those with power and influence within social work to rigorously combat racism by integrating a mandatory Anti-racist Commitment Framework. I am confident that this will embed anti-racist values and ethics into practice (not just theory). Also, I also hope anti-oppressive and anti-discriminatory practice can be reaffirmed generally, as sadly, these have slid off the agenda significantly in recent years.

As a footnote, section 95 the Criminal Justice Act 1991 requires the government to publish information to help the criminal justice system meet its duty to avoid discrimination on the grounds of race, gender or any other improper ground. This is a powerful tool, possibly under-used, by Black and ethnic minority professionals and white officers (allies) who identify racism. This has the potential of legislative support for operational staff who raise the issue of racist practices (where perceived).

Let's not forget, "when you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression". The only real enemy of progress is ignorance. Social justice must prevail.

'One world, one race... the human race!'

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How to promote an anti-racist culture in social work

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By Wayne Reid, BASW England professional officer and social worker Following the constructive feedback received on my article on UK social work's response to the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, I've been ruminating about clear actions that social work educators, employers and key stakeholders can take to promote anti-racism.

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A survey of 500 rape survivors in 2020 found that just 14 per cent believed they would receive justice by reporting the crime to the police (Photo: Gulsan Khan/Getty)

Severe failures by police in England and Wales to support black and minority ethnic victims of sexual abuse have led to the first ever so-called "super-complaint" to address the issue.

Testimonials from victims, academics and specialist support workers highlight the institutional discrimination felt by many when they report allegations of sexual abuse.

The super-complaint system - which allows designated organisations to raise issues on behalf of the public - is designed to identify whether there is a problem with policing that could harm the public, and find a solution if that is proved to be the case.

This particular super-complaint highlights the tens of thousands of victims and survivors who have had to fight for access to professional support that should be routinely offered.

The Tees Valley Inclusion Project and the Halo Project, a charity that supports victims of so-called honour-based violence, forced marriage and Female Genital Mutilation, have contributed to the report.

Yasmin Khan, chief executive of the Halo Project, said the super-complaint is "the biggest wake up call" to ensure police reform takes place.

Ms Khan told : "It has been 22 years since the Macpherson Report set out specific recommendations to address institutional racism in the police. But we still see unfair treatment to black and minority ethnic communities because the police service is not representative or in touch with local communities.

"Victims do not want preferential treatment or extra resources. The police must uphold their public duty to protect all communities, not just some sections of the public. We look forward to the implementation of recommendations from this report."

Confidence in the police and Crown Prosecution Service came under fresh scrutiny last year after a survey of 500 rape survivors found that just 14 per cent believed they would receive justice by reporting the crime to the police.

It followed news that there were 55,000 reports of rape to the police in 2019-20, yet only 1,867 cases charged.

Nazir Afzal OBE, the former chief prosecutor of north-west England who was initiated the prosecution of a sex trafficking gang in Rochdale, said the super-complaint is "critical" to instilling confidence in victims and ensuring no one is "left behind".

He added: "Tens of thousands have suffered in silence without the support they desperately need."

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, the Independent Office for Police Conduct and the College of Policing will jointly investigate the super-complaint and report their findings at a later date.

'I felt the police did not listen to me'

Nadia*, 35, was subject to hate crimes in her community after her six-year-old daughter was raped. Nadia, who is of Pakistani descent, said police did not link the reprisals. Her case is among the super-complaint. Her daughter's abuser was convicted and jailed.

She told i : "It's every parent's worst nightmare. I went to the police with a very serious complaint, and I felt they didn't listen to me. I was made to repeat the trauma every time I visited the police station and it was frustrating.

"After the trial, the court recommended the police provide support to me and my daughter. But I felt they backed away. Had the Halo Project not followed up on our behalf, my daughter would still be waiting to access the aftercare.

"There were repercussions for going to the authorities; my daughter's traumatic experience was gossiped about. I was a victim of hate crime. I have been shunned and accused of bringing shame on my family, but I just wanted justice for my daughter.

"People said I should have 'sorted it out' instead of going to the police. I was taunted daily. I reported each incident to the police, and they did not link the reprisals with my daughter's case. This happened while she was undergoing therapy. It was too much for me to bear.

"I wish I was listened to. I wish the police had considered the cultural significance of what was happening in our community. I'm very hurt inside."

*Name has been changed

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'Super-complaint' raised over severe police failures to BAME survivors of sexual abuse

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Severe failures by police in England and Wales to support black and minority ethnic victims of sexual abuse have led to the first ever so-called "super-complaint" to address the issue. Testimonials from victims, academics and specialist support workers highlight the institutional discrimination felt by many when they report allegations of sexual abuse.

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PAPER: Colonising black female bodies within patriarchal capitalism

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PAPER: Colonising black female bodies within patriarchal capitalism

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In the early weeks of the Covid pandemic, as mounting evidence began to show that Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities were dying at a disproportionate rate, I was asked by the Leader of the Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer, to lead a review to investigate the reasons.

It was immediately apparent that the impact on people's health was inseparable from economic prospects and experiences of discrimination.

It is often said, but perhaps not fully appreciated, that behind each statistic is a human story. For me, amplifying the voices of those who are all too often invisible has been the driving force behind my many years of campaigning.

So this review is not mine. It belongs to the hundreds of people I have spoken to: doctors, nurses, parents, teachers, faith leaders, councillors, activists and, most importantly, those who have lost loved ones. It is based on hundreds of submissions, full of expert opinions, recommendations and heart-wrenching stories.

The overwhelming message was that this must be a watershed moment for change. Black, Asian and minority ethnic people have been overexposed, under protected, stigmatised and overlooked during this pandemic - and this has been generations in the making. The impact of Covid is not random, but foreseeable and inevitable - the consequence of decades of structural injustice, inequality and discrimination that blights our society. We are in the middle of an avoidable crisis. And this report is a rallying cry to break that clear and tragic pattern.

It will require systemic solutions to systemic problems. It is not enough for policymakers to know that ethnic inequalities exist. We need to honestly confront how inequalities at all levels of society have come to exist and the intersectional impact it has on each ethnic group. This means recognising the interaction of faith, class, gender, disability, sexuality, ethnicity and culture in order to truly understand that no community is ever one homogeneous group.

Only then will we be able to respond effectively. We need bold, joined-up policies and an approach that encompasses tackling ethnic disparities, from housing to employment and health.

This report gives just a snapshot of the impact of Covid-19 so far and the structural inequalities faced by Black, Asian and minority ethnic people. It makes immediate recommendations to protect those most at risk as the pandemic progresses and presents next steps for beginning to tackle the underlying causes.

I first met Keir campaigning on these very issues decades ago, and I would like to thank him for commissioning this important review. I would also like to thank Marsha de Cordova MP, Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities, for her tireless support over the last few months, hosting roundtable discussions, pressing the Government to go further and faster on protecting those most at risk from this virus, and for her friendship and wise counsel.

The coronavirus crisis has brought us all together in many ways. But it has also exposed our faults.

This must be a turning point. We have heard enough talk from the Government. It is now time to act. In the words of one submission we received: we created this system; we need to fix it.
Baroness Doreen Lawrence

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In the early weeks of the Covid pandemic, as mounting evidence began to show that Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities were dying at a disproportionate rate, I was asked by the Leader of the Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer, to lead a review to investigate the reasons.

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The full story of Amelia Gentleman's crusading investigation into the shocking Windrush scandal makes for compelling and disturbing reading. Highlighting the individual stories at the heart of the political catastrophe, The Windrush Betrayal brings home the dramatic impact of governmental decisions to ordinary people's lives.

Shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Writing 2020 Longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize 2019
How do you pack for a one-way journey back to a country you left when you were eleven and have not visited for fifty years?

Amelia Gentleman's expose of the Windrush scandal shocked the nation, and led to the resignation of Amber Rudd as Home Secretary. Her tenacious reporting revealed how the government's 'hostile environment' immigration policy had led to thousands of law-abiding people being wrongly classified as illegal immigrants, with many being removed from the country, and many more losing their homes and their jobs.

In The Windrush Betrayal, Gentleman tells the full story of her investigation for the first time. Her writing shines a light on the people directly affected by the scandal and illustrates the devastating effect of politicians becoming so disconnected from the world outside Westminster that they become oblivious to the impact of their policy decisions. This is a vitally important account that exposes deeply disturbing truths about modern Britain.

MEDIA REVIEWS

'Gentleman passes from intitial bemusement at the number of cases of injustice she uncovers to downright shock at the examples of official indifference and incompetence.' - The Times

'A timely reminder of what truly great journalists can achieve.' - David Olusoga

'It is impossible to overstate the importance of this heartbreaking book.' - James O'Brien

'Gentleman boldly chronicles the devastating reality of a scandal that illegalised, imbruted and abandoned British citizens [w]ith the same tenacity that she used to expose the truth of Windrush in the first place'. - David Lammy MP

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The Windrush Betrayal by Amelia Gentleman | Waterstones

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The full story of Amelia Gentleman's crusading investigation into the shocking Windrush scandal makes for compelling and disturbing reading. Highlighting the individual stories at the heart of the political catastrophe, The Windrush Betrayal brings home the dramatic impact of governmental decisions to ordinary people's lives.