Sort of Nothing Like A Book Club: Issue 12

This weeks' editor:
Heidi

Hello,

Welcome to Sort of Nothing Like A Book Club, the newsletter from Creative CoLab (formerly CAGED Arts).

In light of recent events in the Black Lives Matter movement, we wanted to signpost to useful organisations, toolkits, and resources which better explain how to combat and call out racism.

This newsletter is a little different from usual, but we hope the resources listed below are helpful.

"To exist as a historically conscious black or Asian person in Britain is to exist knowing that a majority of your white counterparts do not acknowledge your history. They have not been forced to adopt centuries of trauma, or been subjected to the racialised perceptions created over that time. They have not originated from mother countries gradually drying from the imperialism they were soaked in, and do not have to live in recognition of slavery and colonialism and the impact these have had on their countries and people." (Yawson, 2020)

Why Is It Important To Talk About Racism?
Racism, and police brutality, is not just an American problem. It exists in the UK and is built into our systems and institutions. If you are reading this, statistically you are probably white. 76% of managers in NPOs are white (ACE, 2019) as is 70% of the "permanent workforce" in the creative sector. Racism informs the media we consume, who we see on screen, the pay people receive, how people are treated at work and how those who engage with our work are treated by us and cultural institutions.

If you would like to read more about how racism permeates people's lives, we highly recommend this article by writer June Yawson.

What Does Being An Ally Mean?
You may have seen posts on social media talking about white people being 'allies'. Being an ally means using a privilege that you have to call out racist behaviour, exploring your own biases and educating yourself so as not to continue the trend of emotional burdens placed on people of colour who both have to deal with racism and educating white people.

You can read more about what this means in this great article from Glamour magazine, and more detailed information from Teaching Tolerance.

How Racism Affects Young People's Lives

In 2016 a study highlighted that teachers from pre-school education upwards disciplined black children, specifically black boys more than their white counterparts (Young, 2016).

This study was based on a sample of America teachers, but this is also a problem in the UK. 81% of children suspended from state schools in the UK are from an ethnic minority (ONS , 2020) despite white pupils making up 67% of all school children in state funded education (DfE, 2019).

The baseline for what is considered problematic behaviour is also different in many institutions. Time, and time, and time again, stories emerge about children with natural hair being disciplined because of the way that their hair grows out of their head.

If you are looking to read more about young people of colour's experiences, we highly recommend the blog from No More Exclusions, an organisation who look to combat discrimination faced by young people in education.

Beginning Discussions Around Diversity With Children

Worcester is 94% white British, but that doesn't mean that talking about racism and diversity isn't important. One of the best ways to begin discussions around different cultures is through stories and books. We've found too great lists of books for children and teenagers from Penguin and A Mighty Girl. We are big Izzy Gizmo fans in my house.

Exploring books with a diverse range of characters both support young people of colour by improving representation, but also allow children who grow up in predominantly white areas to learn about people who look different from them. It's important to explore books who don't 'other' children of colour. Books that feature children of colour don't always have to explore race or cultural issues.

What Now?

We hope that some of these resources have been useful and allow you to continue learning. if you're interested in learning more then there are lots of good resources out there including lots of good books. Our office is currently closed until at least the end of June, but if you would like to borrow a book from our small library we have copies of:

Why I'm No Longer To Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge
Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire by Akala
Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in The Cafeteria? by Beverley Tatum
Black and British: A Forgotten History by David Olusoga

When we reopen our office you are welcome to borrow any of these.

And Lastly...

You may have seen lots of links being shared to American organisations you can support. If you have the means to and want to donate to organisations supporting people of colour or combating racism, this article from Stylist has an excellent list.

You can also support organisations such UNMUTED, a Birmingham based organisation who support LGBTQ+ people of colour or Kids of Colour whose work supporting young people of colour.

Bye!