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Employment
Wellbeing and productivity: the value of flexible working
Runnymede Trust researcher Carol Sidney recently worked with peer researchers Jay Fente and Barinur Rashid to complete a study on access to flexible working arrangements for frontline workers from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds. Their findings highlight the value of flexibility in creating more inclusive, supportive and productive workplaces – and the need for a cultural shift within businesses and organisations.
Employment
Wellbeing and productivity: the value of flexible working
Runnymede Trust researcher Carol Sidney recently worked with peer researchers Jay Fente and Barinur Rashid to complete a study on access to flexible working arrangements for frontline workers from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds. Their findings highlight the value of flexibility in creating more inclusive, supportive and productive workplaces – and the need for a cultural shift within businesses and organisations.
Education
Ensuring equity in higher education
A groundbreaking study challenges the narrative that race-conscious admissions compromise academic quality at US universities. The findings have significant implications for the higher education system in the UK, where debates about fairness, meritocracy and diversity in admissions are increasingly prominent, argues journalist Anil Dawar.
Sport
Jumping for justice
Shalena Haughton-Peters, the Runnymede Trust’s operations director, recently did a sponsored skydive to raise funds for the organisation. She explains what motivated her to take on the challenge – and encourages others to follow in her footsteps.
Migration
A living archive for migration stories
What We Leave We Carry is a podcast series from WritersMosaic magazine that tells the true-life stories of migration to the UK. It delves into hidden and diverse communities across the country, exploring richly rewarding stories. Colin Grant, director of WritersMosaic and the author of books such as Bageye at the Wheel, Homecoming and I’m Black So You Don’t Have to Be, speaks to journalist Ella Sinclair about complicating ‘the dominant picture that we have of Britain’ and challenging pervasive anti-immigration rhetoric.
Culture
'Life is all about experiences'
Lennox Cato is a renowned antiques dealer and an expert on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow. Born to immigrant Grenadian parents, he was adopted by a white antiques dealer in 1961 at the age of two months. Having learned the business amidst the rough and tumble of Brighton’s antiques trade, Cato set up his first shop at 19. Now living in Edenbridge, Kent, he is a Deputy Lieutenant of the county and a panel member of the National Heritage Memorial Fund. He speaks to journalist Anil Dawar.
Politics
Another story to tell
Six months on from the racist riots, the Runnymede Trust’s CEO, Shabna Begum, travelled to Liverpool to learn about the ongoing impact of the violence on communities of colour. The message from the grassroots activists she met was loud and clear: we need solidarity and support, rather than scapegoating and austerity.
Sport
Keep on running
On 27 April, a five-strong team will run the London Marathon to raise funds for the Runnymede Trust. It includes senior researcher Serena Robinson, her friend Seun Seriki and former Runnymede Trust interim co-CEO Laurence Jay, alongside Justin Dieobi-Anene and Harrison Galliven. Here they explain why they decided to take on the epic 26.2-mile challenge – and why they need your support.
Sport
Wheels in motion
A cycling network for Muslim women, Evolve aims to make the activity more accessible. Working in Harrow and Hertfordshire, the organisation runs coaching sessions, group rides and events to help women and children under the age of 16 learn to cycle and fulfil their potential. Iffat Tejani, the founder of Evolve, speaks to journalist Minreet Kaur about her personal story, the inspiration behind the organisation and plans for the future.
Education
Challenging the diversity crisis in the arts
The arts industry in the UK has a diversity problem. Despite the wealth of talent in our communities, it remains overwhelmingly homogeneous. If we want to improve the situation, we need to start with better careers guidance, argues journalist Anil Dawar.
Education
Challenging hair discrimination in schools
After facing discrimination in school because of her Afro hair, Ruby Williams decided to share her story publicly to raise awareness about the issue. Her mother, Kate Williams, later wrote about her and Ruby’s experiences for the Runnymede Trust. Here they reflect on the progress made in the years since and make a renewed call for inclusive hair policies in the education system.
Education
Saturday schools
Since the 1940s, community-run Saturday schools have provided supplementary education for Black children across the UK, teaching a much more diverse curriculum than their mainstream counterparts. Despite facing challenges, these schools still play a vital role in teaching young people about Black British history, alongside a range of other educational resources, writes app developer and CEO Kayleigh Oliver.
Culture
Making filmmaking more inclusive
Frustrated by the lack of representation in filmmaking in the northwest London borough of Brent, one of the most diverse places in the UK, filmmakers Turab Shah and Arwa Aburawa set up Other Cinemas in 2019 as an exhibition, film school and filmmaking practice to celebrate and platform Black and minority ethnic filmmakers. Shah spoke with Nellie Khossousi on retention issues in the film industry, how to rethink a film’s success and why he hopes his and Aburawa’s work will soon become redundant.
Culture
Refugee to MBE
An acclaimed hip hop dancer, choreographer, teacher, social entrepreneur and ‘talent awakener’, Toby Gorniak fled anti-Roma violence in Poland and built a new life in the UK. Based in Plymouth, he founded arts organisation Street Factory, which has inspired thousands of young people from disadvantaged or marginalised backgrounds. Here he discusses racism, hip hop, academia and his plan to take the ‘Gorniak Method’ global. Article by Jo Gorniak.
Sport
Sport for all
This summer Nottingham played host to the first Sikh Games in the UK, a celebration of sport, culture and representation featuring everything from football, cricket, hockey and kabbadi competitions to music and martial arts. Mandeep Kaur Moore, the president and founder of the event, speaks to journalist Minreet Kaur about the inspiration behind the games, her personal highlights and what she has planned for the future.
History
Unsung heroes
As this year’s Black History Month gets underway, the Runnymede Trust’s Hannah Francis highlights three important Black British figures whose stories are often overlooked but remain strikingly relevant today: William Cuffay, Kathleen Locke and Jean Binta Breeze.
Criminal Justice
Justice in a time of racism
In the wake of the summer’s racist riots, it might be hoped that the power of the legal system would be harnessed to tackle racism. But while many people involved in the riots have been convicted of race hate crimes, the legal system has also hindered the struggle for racial justice, argues Bharat Malkani, a reader in law at Cardiff University and author of Racial Justice and the Limits of Law.
Politics
Engaging young people in politics
The 2024 general election saw lower voter turnout among both young people and people of colour. But this doesn’t mean that they’re not interested in politics and democracy, writes Banseka Kayembe, director of Naked Politics, which encourages young people to get involved in creating the political change they desire.
Climate emergency
Clean air for the ends
Communities of colour are disproportionately affected by the failure of successive governments to address the climate emergency – and air pollution in particular – with an equitable and inclusive approach. Poetic Unity, a Brixton-based charity that supports thousands of young Black and marginalised people through poetry and spoken word, has been raising awareness about the issue for the past two years. Jayda David provides an insight into the organisation’s work.
Culture
'Be the change'
George Mpanga, better known as George the Poet, was born in London to Ugandan parents. He started rapping as a teenager then turned to spoken word at Cambridge University, with poverty and racism core themes of his work. His award-winning Have You Heard George’s Podcast? tells stories from the Grenfell tragedy and Ghana’s freedom struggle to his take on true love. Part memoir, part history and politics, his new book, Track Record: Me, Music and the War on Blackness, explores ‘the long-running assault on Black life’ and how it has shaped him. He speaks to journalist Kitty Melrose.
History
‘A different way of thinking about the past’
Dr Radhika Natarajan’s new children’s book, Hear Our Voices, is a powerful history of the British empire told from the perspectives of 20 people who lived through it, from poets to freedom fighters. Natarajan, associate professor of history and humanities at Reed College, Oregon spoke to the Runnymede Trust’s Dr Lesley Nelson-Addy about the importance of giving voice to people whose views and experiences of colonialism have been overlooked or ignored. Article by Arveen Kaur.
Politics
Prime Minister: scrap unfair voter ID laws
Last week, the Runnymede Trust joined a wide range of NGOs, charities, writers, poets, artists, musicians, actors, campaigners and activists in signing an open letter urging Prime Minister Keir Starmer to repeal the unfair voter ID laws.
Politics
A window of opportunity
Many political commentators have attributed the fall in the Labour vote from Black and Asian communities in the general election to the crisis in Gaza. But there is also widespread disillusionment with Labour on the question of tackling systemic racism, writes journalist Lester Holloway. If the new prime minister wants to start making amends, he argues, introducing a Race Equality Act in his first King’s Speech on Wednesday is essential.
Politics
After the last 14 years, what’s next for racial justice?
It is up to new parliamentarians, government and opposition alike to reject the politics of hate and to restore the politics of hope; hope that politics can answer the urgent questions of our time and build a fairer and more racially just Britain.
Education
Structural injustices
The Alliance for Inclusive Education (ALLFIE) campaigns for the right of all disabled people to access and be supported in mainstream education. Funded by the Runnymede Trust, its latest report explores disabled young people’s experiences of racism and ableism in mainstream education. The research highlights the injustice they face and the urgent need for change, writes ALLFIE’s director, Michelle Daley.
Climate emergency
The struggle for climate justice in the Niger Delta
Colonised by Britain in 1884, Nigeria was an important site for the expansion of British oil interests. This has had a seismic impact, particularly on the Niger Delta, where decades of hazardous environmental pollution by Shell – a British multinational headquartered in London – have devastated the region and its communities. The ongoing fight for compensation and remediation underscores the urgent need for a global commitment to environmental justice, writes Lazarus Tamana, president of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).
Policing
Ending the use of strip search against children
New Runnymede Trust research reveals the extent to which strip search is disproportionately used against children of colour, particularly Black boys and girls. If we’re really concerned about children’s welfare, it’s time to end this traumatising practice, writes the Runnymede Trust’s Sophia Purdy-Moore.
Migration
‘My story is millions of stories of children in need’
After being forced to flee her home in Syria as a teenager, education activist Muzoon Almellehan started campaigning while living in a refugee camp in Jordan. She subsequently became the first refugee to be named a UNICEF ‘goodwill ambassador’ and recently published her first book Muzoon: A Syrian Refugee Speaks Out. Now living in the UK with her family, Muzoon speaks to journalist Kitty Melrose about her journey as a refugee, becoming an activist and why she wants to inspire other young people.
History
‘You have to fight for this history’
Professor Hakim Adi’s latest book, African and Caribbean People in Britain: A History, is a major new work that provides a fresh perspective on the history of Black people in the UK. It was shortlisted for the prestigious Wolfson History Prize in September, less than a fortnight after Professor Adi’s groundbreaking MRes (research masters) course on the history of Africa and the African diaspora was controversially axed by the University of Chichester. He speaks to the Runnymede Trust’s Hannah Francis – one of his former students – about the book and the campaign to save the course.
Housing
Social housing: chronic failures and misguided reforms
The UK is in a social housing crisis but proposed government reforms threaten to make a dire situation even worse, particularly for people of colour. What we need instead is action to address structural inequalities and a commitment to build more quality social housing stock in line with demand, writes the Runnymede Trust’s Nannette Youssef.
Education
Crisis point: Race and inclusion in art education
A major new report by the Runnymede Trust and the Freelands Foundation shows that secondary school teachers and students in England are rooted in a system that cannot support their efforts to improve experiences of art education. Our interim CEO, Shabna Begum, outlines the key findings.
Sport
The lion who never roared
In 1925, Plymouth Argyle’s Jack Leslie became the first Black footballer to be selected for England, only to be swiftly dropped because of the colour of his skin. Although he still had an illustrious career, this shameful incident was largely forgotten until a group of supporters launched a campaign that led to a statue of Leslie at the Argyle stadium and the award of an honorary cap from the FA in 2023. Matt Tiller, co-founder of the Jack Leslie Campaign and author of The Lion Who Never Roared, which tells Jack’s story, speaks to the Runnymede Trust’s Shafik Meghji.
Health
Shining a light
A former chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing who has held a wide range of senior roles in the NHS, Donna Kinnair takes over from Clive Jones as chair of the Runnymede Trust in April. She discusses her varied career, health inequalities and – as we mark International Women’s Day – the challenges facing women of colour, as well as her hopes for the future.
Education
‘All they want is the chance to clear their names’: The English-language test scandal
Thousands of international students have had their lives devastated after being accused of cheating on an English-language test, in a case that has been compared to the Post Office Horizon scandal. As legal proceedings continue, Nazek Ramadan of charity Migrant Voice, which is campaigning on the issue, provides some vital context.
Employment
Unlocking career opportunities for young Black men
Action for Race Equality has been working to end racial inequality in the education, employment and justice systems since 1991. The charity’s pioneering Moving on Up programme seeks to improve employment outcomes for young Black men aged 16-24 in London. Nina Meghji speaks to Ian Moya, a science teacher and ambassador for the initiative, about championing the career goals of young Black men, navigating his own employment pathway, and why confidence, exposure and representation are the key.
Climate emergency
Racial justice and the climate emergency
Globally, entrenched racialised inequalities mean that people of colour and Indigenous groups are the most severely affected by the impacts of the climate emergency. In response, writes the Runnymede Trust’s Nannette Youssef, a parliamentary inquiry has been launched to examine the issues.
Sport
Diversifying the world of aquatics
In England, more than 90 per cent of Black and Asian adults and around 80 per cent of Black and Asian children do not swim, according to figures from Sport England. It is a situation that the Black Swimming Association (BSA) is determined to change. Nellie Khossousi speaks to BSA co-founder, broadcast journalist and former elite swimmer Seren Jones about how the charity is diversifying the world of aquatics and raising awareness about water safety among Black and Asian communities.
Technology
Tackling racial disparities on Wikipedia
One of the world’s most popular websites, Wikipedia is a vital resource for people across the globe, yet marginalised communities remain underrepresented in terms of both entries and editors. Campaign groups and volunteers are working hard to address the imbalance, writes David Jesudason.
Islamophobia
Islamophobia Awareness Month: Prevent, prejudice and precariousness
Last week marked the start of Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM), a campaign founded in 2012 to showcase the positive contributions of Muslims and raise awareness of Islamophobia. Both ambitions are laudable, but they also betray a troubling truth about the pernicious nature of the experiences of the Muslim community in the UK in 2023, writes the Runnymede Trust’s Shabna Begum. IAM reminds us that we continually need to prove our lived reality of everyday discrimination and that the terms of our belonging requires us to regularly demonstrate our ‘added value’ to British society.
Politics
Half-hearted commitments and harmful rhetoric
Rather than proposing decisive action to tackle racial disparities, the recent Conservative and Labour party conferences merely provided vague promises and provocative statements. The Runnymede Trust’s Nannette Youssef reports.
Migration
Putting down roots
Fences & Frontiers aims to make London a welcoming, supportive and inspiring place to live for refugees and people seeking asylum, including by providing trips to green spaces in and around the capital. Writer Taran N Khan recently joined the charity on an evocative walk in Kew gardens, an experience that proved to be a ‘terrain of shared memories’.
Culture
Blurring boundaries
A partnership between the Runnymede Trust and Penguin Random House, the Lit in Colour programme helps schools to make the teaching and learning of English literature more inclusive. At its first teacher conference this summer, the Runnymede Trust’s Lesley Nelson-Addy spoke to Bernardine Evaristo, the renowned author of 10 books, including the bestselling novel Girl, Woman, Other, which won the Booker Prize in 2019 and made her the first writer with Black heritage to claim the award in its 50-year history. This is an edited extract from their interview.
Food and drink
Illuminating Britain’s Desi pubs
In his new book, Desi Pubs, award-winning journalist and beer writer David Jesudason travels across the UK, visiting more than 200 pubs run by British-South Asian landlords who have stamped their unique identities on their establishments. He speaks to Shafik Meghji about the history of these much-loved institutions, how they have become a great success story of multiculturalism, and the importance of mixed grills.
Education
Building an anti-racist classroom
Building on her experience as a headteacher in London, education and racial literacy consultant Orlene Badu’s new book, How to Build Your Antiracist Classroom, is a practical guide to tackling racism in schools. Here she discusses the inspiration behind the book, her key advice for teachers, and how to help children build a ‘thriving mindset’.
Education
Sidelining Black British history
On 25 August, the University of Chichester officially announced it was axing its groundbreaking MRes (research masters) course on the history of Africa and the African diaspora and making Professor Hakim Adi – the first Black professor of this subject in the UK – redundant. Current students and graduates of the course – including the Runnymede Trust’s Hannah Francis – had been notified that this devastating move was under consideration the previous month. In this personal response, she writes about why Professor Adi’s work and course are so vital.
Society
Reflections on A Small Light
Focusing on the story of Miep Gies, who played a crucial role in hiding Anne Frank and her family during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam, the Disney+ series A Small Light illustrates how dehumanising discourse can quickly become normalised in society. It is a message that has a powerful resonance today, writes Amy Jaffa.
Migration
Hear our stories
The subject of migration dominates political and media debates, yet we rarely hear the voices of the people at the sharp end – the migrants and refugees themselves. A new book produced by TogetherInTheUK – a social enterprise that provides an unbiased communications platform for migrants and refugees to safely share their stories, while offering reliable advice and insights in life in the UK – aims to put that right. Featuring a foreword by Lord Alf Dubs, Hear Our Stories: An Anthology of Writings on Migration is a powerful collection of poetry and prose about hope, despair, gratitude, sadness and relief by people who have journeyed to the UK in search of a better life. The following are edited extracts from the book.
Media
Between the lines
In his research into the coverage of homicide incidents in London, crime and justice analyst Patrick Olajide sought to understand how the press talks about Black victims of crime. What he discovered was an 'almost surgical indifference' to the tragic loss of human life.
Food
A love letter to Chinese takeaways
Award-winning writer and editor Angela Hui’s first book, Takeaway: Stories From a Childhood Behind the Counter, is a food memoir about her experience of growing up in a Chinese takeaway in rural Wales. It shines a light on the food, culture and identity of East and Southeast Asian communities and their experiences of racism and discrimination in the UK. Hui, a former Time Out food and drink editor and HuffPost lifestyle reporter, speaks to Nina Meghji about reliving her painful past, the book’s unexpected readership, harnessing her cultural identity, and why battered sausages often appear on Chinese takeaway menus.
Policing
Black people as perennial suspects: the racialised policing of music festivals
Our Sophia Purdy-Moore on the racialised, and hypocritical, nature of how British music festivals are policed. Black people are subject to suspicion, criminalisation, and over-policing based on deeply rooted and racist perceptions that ‘Blackness’ is inherently violent, disruptive, and in need of controlling.
Health
The NHS at 75: Racial disparities and reliance
Today marks the 75th anniversary of the NHS. Since its foundation, the service has relied upon doctors, nurses and staff from Black, Asian and racially marginalised backgrounds, yet systemic racism and stark racial disparities in diagnosis and treatment remain entrenched, writes Dr Annabel Sowemimo.
Society
Examining the ‘racial code’
Academic, author and consultant Professor Nicola Rollock’s new book, The Racial Code, explores the ‘subtle forms of racism’ that govern our lives but often slip under the radar. She talks to Shafik Meghji about using fictional stories rooted in fact to illuminate everyday racism, offering readers fresh perspectives, and the importance of self-care.
Migration
Bittersweet anniversary
Tomorrow marks the 75th anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush berthing at Tilbury Docks, yet the celebrations will be tinged with sadness given the ongoing Windrush scandal and the clamour of the current immigration debate. We need substantive change rather than symbolic gestures, writes Halima Begum, CEO of the Runnymede Trust.
Society
Celebrating the Windrush generation at 75
Today’s national Windrush Day marks the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the passengers of the Empire Windrush to the UK from the Caribbean. It is a chance to both celebrate the profound contribution of the Windrush generation, who came from across the Commonwealth, to British society and redouble our efforts to challenge the ongoing injustices they continue to face, writes social commentator and activist Patrick Vernon.
Identity
‘A relentless chipping away’
From fuel poverty to a lack of stopping places, lower life expectancy to restrictive legislation, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities in the UK face multiple threats and require urgent support, writes Chris McDonagh of the charity Friends, Families and Travellers.
Sport
Breaking down barriers in football
Frustrated by the lack of Asian representation in women’s football in the UK, embroidery artist Nicole Chui joined forces with Baesianz art collective co-founders Sami Kimberley and Sarah Khan in May 2022 to form Baesianz FC, a team for women, trans and non-binary people of Asian heritage. She spoke to Nellie Khossousi about how the London-based club is helping to make football a more inclusive sport.
Culture
PlayFight: The adultification of Black children
A critically acclaimed piece of theatre, PlayFight holds a mirror up to the systemic racism in schools, particularly the adultification of Black children. Ahead of a run at the Pleasance Theatre in Islington, actor and theatre producer Shereener Browne explains how the play was inspired by a shocking incident in school involving her six-year-old son.
Criminal Justice
Reimagining justice
A recent parliamentary meeting brought together MPs, barristers and representatives of civil society groups and the Crown Prosecution Service to discuss why British policing is failing marginalised groups and how the problem can be addressed. The Runnymede Trust’s Sophia Purdy-Moore and Nannette Youssef explore the issues raised and call for ‘multiple, holistic responses’ to tackle the entrenched racial disproportionalities in the criminal justice system.
Culture
Championing diversity and inclusion in the great outdoors
During the 2020 lockdown, Haroon Mota founded Muslim Hikers in an attempt to inspire members of his community to take part in outdoor activities in the UK countryside. The organisation has since gone from strength to strength, breaking down barriers, attracting hundreds of people to its monthly events, and collaborating with global brands such as Adidas. Mota spoke to Nellie Khossousi about how his Active Inclusion Network – which includes the Muslim Runners and Muslim Cyclists groups, as well as Muslim Hikers – is making the great outdoors a more accessible and inclusive place.
Migration
Making the case for abolishing borders
Gracie Mae Bradley and Luke de Noronha’s powerful and thought-provoking book Against Borders argues that borders harm all of us – by dividing families and workers, fuelling racial division and reinforcing global disparities – and must be scrapped. In this edited extract, the authors explain why it is vital that anti-racists join the fight for abolition.
History
Dear Stephen: Race and belonging 30 years on
On 22 April 1993, a young aspiring architect, Stephen Lawrence, was murdered in a racist attack in Eltham, southeast London. His death had a seismic impact on British society, shining a spotlight on its racial inequities, prejudices, discrimination and violence. It also prompted the landmark Macpherson report, which brought the issue of institutional racism into the mainstream and whose findings were echoed in the recent Casey report. To mark the 30th anniversary of Stephen’s death, the Runnymede Trust and the Stephen Lawrence Day Foundation have jointly produced a new report, Dear Stephen: Race and belonging 30 years on, that honours his life and legacy. Here is the introduction to this vital piece of research.
Culture
Optimism but not delusion: Journalism and the Black diaspora
Award-winning author, broadcaster and University of Manchester sociology professor Gary Younge’s new book, Dispatches from the Diaspora: From Nelson Mandela to Black Lives Matter, is a powerful and illuminating collection of journalism about race, racism and Black life and death. The former Guardian columnist and editor-at-large speaks to Shafik Meghji about covering Nelson Mandela as a rookie reporter, why he doesn’t worry about pigeonholing, how the British media has changed with regards to race, and why Stormzy makes him optimistic.
Policing
History repeating: British policing and Black communities
In a personal response to the recent Casey Review, the Runnymede Trust’s Sophia Purdy-Moore says Black communities are tired and traumatised by the repeated failure to tackle institutional racism in British policing.
Housing
Housing: a burning issue
As the recent death of a Bangladeshi man in an east London flat fire tragically highlighted, Black and minority ethnic communities too often live in overcrowded and unsafe conditions. This is nothing new says the Runnymede Trust’s Dr Shabna Begum, whose new book, From Sylhet to Spitalfields, tells the story of a momentous Bengali squatters’ movement in the 1970s that offers vital lessons for today’s housing challenges.
Migration
Challenging divisive language against refugees
In January, Holocaust survivor and educator Joan Salter MBE challenged Home Secretary Suella Braverman over the divisive language she used against refugees. A video of the encounter went viral and has been viewed millions of times. In an interview carried out before the BBC-Gary Lineker row, Joan talked to journalist Kitty Melrose about escaping the Nazis, her Holocaust education work, and how language used by politicians can increase hatred and racist violence in society.
Climate emergency
Muslim voices against climate injustice
Despite being disproportionately impacted by the climate emergency globally, Muslim communities are under-represented in the climate movement. A new campaign – Two Billion Strong – aims to change that and encourage more Muslims to speak up against climate injustice, as Zahrah Vawda and Nazia Sultana explain.
Education
Addressing racist bullying in schools
Children facing racist bullying at school need support from teachers, but many don’t get it, according to Dr Maria Sapouna, Dr Leyla De Amicis and Professor Loris Vezzali, the authors of a new international study.
Criminal Justice
Ethnic minority communities are bearing the brunt of legal aid cuts
Cuts to legal aid – which helps people meet the cost of legal advice, family mediation and representation in court – are hitting Black and minority ethnic communities the hardest and the situation is set to get worse. Angela Jackman KC (Hon) explains why urgent action is needed.
Migration
Tackling the crisis in the asylum system
Amid further deaths in the Channel, demands for a public inquiry into the shocking treatment of people seeking asylum at the Manston processing centre, and reports that dozens of asylum-seeking children have been kidnapped by criminal gangs from a Brighton hotel managed by the Home Office, Mark Davies of the Refugee Council calls on the government to take urgent action to resolve the crisis.
Criminal Justice
Over-policed and under-protected
A new Runnymede Trust briefing reveals how the rate of police officers in UK schools is leaving Black and minority ethnic pupils over-policed and under-protected, as highlighted by the shocking Child Q case. Rather than criminalising our children, we need greater investment in pastoral care and support systems, and to address systemically rooted inequalities, says Dr Shabna Begum, head of research at the Runnymede Trust.
Migration
Remembering the Ugandan Asian expulsion 50 years on
On 4 August 1972, Ugandan dictator Idi Amin issued a decree: all non-citizen Asians living in the country had 90 days to leave. Of about 80,000 people, around 28,000 went to the UK, making and building their lives in their coloniser’s homeland. Fifty years on, travel writer and editor Meera Dattani explores what this means for a second-generation British Ugandan Asian.
Identity
Uncovering Britain's hidden Muslim heritage
An award-winning travel writer, author and journalist specialising in Muslim heritage and culture, Tharik Hussain has written the ‘Hidden Muslim Britain’ chapter of the new Lonely Planet book Experience Great Britain – the first time the subject has been covered in a mainstream travel guide.
Climate emergency
Supporting an inclusive transition to a green economy
As the COP27 summit continues in Egypt, an innovative new programme in the UK is providing Black and minority ethnic young people with the skills and contacts needed to thrive in the green economy. Jessica Tomico and Xavier Baker explain how it works.
Climate emergency
Why we can’t tackle the environmental emergency without tackling racism
As the COP27 summit gets underway in Egypt this week it’s vital to remember that the legacy of colonialism has ensured racism and the environmental emergency are inextricably linked. Earlier this year a report by the Runnymede Trust and Greenpeace examined the impact of this discrimination and provided a rallying call for environmental justice. In a piece originally published in July by Greenpeace, climate activist and ornithologist Dr Mya-Rose Craig explores the issues.
Migration
Challenging No Recourse to Public Funds
The government’s No Recourse to Public Funds policy – which prevents most people seeking asylum in the UK from accessing vital support – was one of the key topics under discussion at the Runnymede Trust’s recent We Move summit. Campaigners Solomon Adegbulugbe and Pascale Robinson explain why the policy – which the Runnymede Trust is urging Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to scrap – is so damaging and how it can be challenged.
Economy
Ethnic minority households will be among the hardest hit by the cost of living crisis
We are hurtling into one of the biggest economic crises the UK seen in living memory. Kathryn Zacharek explains why low-income ethnic minority households, at the intersection of multiple disadvantages, will be among of the worst hit, and what support is out there.
Education
Many young minority ethnic people don't feel a sense of inclusion or belonging at school
Anwar Akhtar, founder and director of the UK arts and journalism charity Samosa Media, talks about his documentary "Schools Apart" which navigates how to make minority ethnic children feel included and represented at school.
Employment
How Covid exposed the racial segregation rife in the workplace
The pandemic exacerbated the deep rooted racial inequalities already in existence across society. Two and a half years on, Nannette Youssef and Sanmeet Kaur, policy officer at the Runnymede Trust and policy and campaigns support officer at the TUC, assess how Covid exposed blatant racial segregation within UK workplaces.
Migration
The origins of the Windrush scandal lie in 30 years of racist immigration legislation
To mark Windrush Day 2022, barrister Grace Brown lays out the context and legal circumstances behind the Windrush scandal, and how a buried Home Office report reflects the lack of lessons learned.
A legacy of Rest and Resistance
As we continue to reel from the murder of George Floyd two long years later, Ellie Ikiebe articulately reinforces rest as a form of resistance. Who gets to rest and who does not? Why is so much chaos left for marginalised communities to fix when it is not their creation? Why are certain demographics of people placed in jobs that see them overworked and underpaid? Why nature is harder to access when you live in an inner city, why does the countryside feels unsafe to many marginalised communities? These questions are important because access to rest is not equally distributed. Rest is an act of political warfare.
Beauty
It’s not just hair, it’s a tool to navigate society and relationships
Former Runnymede Trust Unbound Trainee, Bowale Fadare, reflects on her visit to the Horniman Museum’s exhibition, Hair: Untold Stories. What is the cultural and political significance of hair, and how can we unlearn discriminatory norms, starting with hair?
Identity
Kay Rufai: ‘I love seeing people just be unapologetically themselves’
Christina Orekedo interviews Kay Rufai, creator of the S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys project. The project is a showcase of young Black boys being able to express themselves in a way that our society doesn’t always permit. Our young Black Boys are continuously pigeonholed. From being disproportionately stopped and searched, excluded from school, to simply being overlooked, Kay Rufai transforms this narrative by spotlighting the stories of young Black boys.
Migration
“What about us?": the UK’s discriminatory treatment of refugees must end
As the Nationality and Borders Bill progresses through parliament and the government unveil its new plan to offshore refugee to Rwanda, the UK is approaching a crossroads. It either turns its back on the international protection system - which states that refugees must not be penalised based on how they arrive - or provides all refugees with an equal level of dignity and support. Choosing the latter is essential. Sanctuary should never discriminate.
Identity
If everyone’s “normal” is different, then different should be the new normal
Born with Cerebral Palsy, now just 17 years old, Yasmin Caulfield's main mission is to use writing as a platform to create resonance and understanding surrounding issues of equality, progression and acceptance, while empowering others to find sanctuary in their individual expression. In this blog piece she gives her thoughts on what 'normal' means, and why different should be the new normal.
Culture
The underground Bengali music scene of the 80s and 90s: a story largely untold
Ansar Ahmed Ullah reflects on the rise of British Asian underground music scene in the 80s and 90s, which flourished amidst an environment of racial violence and political struggle for self-identity and created a whole new genre.
Policing
The horrifying abuse of Child Q should catalyse the end of police in schools
Amidst a backdrop of mobilisation against police institutional racism and misogyny in recent years, the case of Child Q sparked a reckoning with the harms of policing in schools.
Politics
The Bill of Rights: undermining rights for Black and ethnic minority groups when they most need protection
The Runnymede Trust's policy team explain why the Governments proposed upheaval of the Human Rights Act would dilute protections for Black and minority ethnic people, at a time when they most need support.
Economy
Cutting through the pandemic: the value of Black barbershops
As small Black businesses up and down the country struggle to bounce back from the pandemic, supporting their recovery should be a key aim. Not only will it help repair our local economies, it can help to enhance and protect the health and wellbeing of communities who have been at the sharp end of the pandemic.
Education
Is it that deep? The impact of policing Black British language speakers in British schools
This blog is written by Black Learning Achievement and Mental Health (BLAM UK) to support their work to end linguistic injustice in schools. This piece explains why banning the use of Black British English in UK schools reinforces negative perceptions and stereotypes which are harmful to Black students.
Environment
Choked Up: The teenagers campaigning for clean air
Choked Up, a group who describe themselves as “black and brown teenagers from south London”, have set up a campaign for clean air. They explain the links between race and dangerous levels of air pollution in London, and what we can do about it.
History
The New Cross Fire 1981: A Personal Reflection
41 years ago today, 13 teenagers were killed in a fire that swept through 439 New Cross Road, in a suspected racist attack. While most of the country remained silent on the events of that day, Black people the length and breadth of Britain organised, their efforts eventually leading to the Black People’s Day of Action.
Politics
Listen to us: it's time to scrap the Policing Bill
Encompassing a crack down on everything from the right to protest to expanding the use of stop and search powers, the Bill constitutes draconian measures which will entrench racial discrimination and curtail civil liberties.
Migration
The hostile environment and pandemic combined: refugees and asylum seekers’ experiences of life in the UK
The combined impacts of the pandemic with hostile environment policies have created a highly precarious situation, and until the hostile treatment of migrants changes, the precarity and vulnerability of asylum seekers and refugees – in pandemic and non-pandemic times –will remain.
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