those who remain silent in the face of oppression

#Those who remain silent in the face of oppression skin
#Those who remain silent in the face of oppression professional

These modern-day revolutionaries are accused of ‘playing the race card’ by some. The reality is the list of minimisations and omissions (accidental or otherwise) for me and other Black people is endless and normalised.Ĭritics argue that politics is for politicians and Rashford should ‘stick to football’ and Banjo should ‘stick to dancing’. People must make their own minds up about any similarities. Interestingly, some people have likened Black actor John Boyega being cut out of the Chinese launch of a perfume advert to a photo tweeted from a Guardian Social Care Lives 2020 event in which I was cut out as a panelist. This is evidenced by the tiny number of Black people honoured with a statue or trophy name the groundswell of racism aimed at Marcus Rashford for campaigning to provide meals for disadvantaged children and the avalanche of complaints and relentless racism targeted at Ashley Banjo for leading a BLM-themed dance. Most Black and ethnic minority people recognise early on that we are forced to try harder and tolerate multi-layered oppression for our endeavours and to be recognised. Some of us learn to live with the burden of our exposure in white spaces, even though it punctuates the rhythm of our everyday lives, and some do not.

The prevalence of anti-black racism and the stealthy manoeuvres to gloss over our contributions and downplay our legacies is discombobulating.

#Those who remain silent in the face of oppression skin

My narrative is based on my lived experiences and those of other people who are routinely judged on the basis of their skin colour. My motivation is not for career ambition or financial gain. It’s for the cause, not applause – and the cause is Black Lives Matter. ‘Niceness’ is often weaponised against people of colour. Also, I refuse to be the tokenistic ‘Black voice’ of BASW. I’m one of many Black voices in the profession. I realise that I’ve been ‘let in’ (to some extent) to express my views because, to quote Black historian and TV presenter David Olusoga, I “won’t scare the horses”: I am supposedly well-spoken and middle-class or so I’ve been told.įor the record, I’m not aspiring to be a ‘nice guy’ when it comes to combating oppressive regimes and systems.

#Those who remain silent in the face of oppression professional

I write this article from both personal and professional perspectives. I do not speak on behalf of all Black and ethnic minority people or social workers as we are not a homogenous group. To quote US novelist and activist James Baldwin: 'I can't believe what you say, because I see what you do.' The level of inaction from many within the profession's establishment is both deafening and revealing. Professional Social Work - 11 December, 2020īlack History Month has passed but we must not stop ringing the alarm on racism in social work.