Early childhood and peace, the black middle class and black academics/researchers

From all accounts, the Black Voices Network seminar at the UNA Global Conference, stimulated, inspired and provoked the audience.  We will give a full account of it soon - looking for your views on some of the key questions. 

Following the disappointing news that there is currently no funding at NCB to support our Network, we are actively looking for international links to enable the Network to continue with its programme of research, information development, networking and debate.

Other events and opportunities of interest.

25 May 2011: Policy and Practice in Education - Implications for Black and Minority Ethnic Academics

Organised by the British Educational Research Association, the event gives space to black and other minority ethnic researchers to network and promote career development.  The keynote speech 'Race and racialisation in a cold climate' is being given by Professor Ann Phoenix, of the Thomas Coram Research Institute, Institute of Education, London.  Ann has written extensively on identity and prompted much discussion and reflection by last year's presentation on the Transforming Experiences project at our Network seminar.
 http://www.bera.ac.uk/files/2011/04/BERA-BME-conference-2011-flyer-1.pdf

The conference links handily with the recent research funded and disseminated through the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Ethnic diversity and inequality - ethical and scientific rigour in social research. The research picks up on an issue I found particularly difficult while compiling my Equality and Diversity Bulletins at NCB - most reports about children and families that are commissioned to influence policy and practice do not include useful data ethnicity.  If ethnicity is mentioned at all within the reports, the categories are so broad that information is useless.  (Professor Gary Graig raised this worrying issue in his evaluation of Sure Start and Black and Minority Ethnic Populations. )

The JRF report concludes that guidance documents on incorporating ethnicity into research are useful, but researchers need to be trained to improve their confidence to implement them.  Perhaps the same argument can be used for most equality policies.

National Black Supplementary Schools Week - Past, Present and Future

Taking place from 22 August 2011 to 28 August 2011, the National Association of Black Supplementary Schools (NABSS) will be highlighting the essential work of schools across the country in raising black children's educational achievement.  The positive contribution made by supplementary schools was highlighted in an extensive report commissioned by the DfES in 2009.  http://www.nabss.org.uk/

Coming soon - The Educational Strategies of the Black Middle Class

The report of a two-year research project at the Institute of Education will be unleashed next month.  Now, I have been witness to some quite fiery debates about whether a black middle class does exist in the UK or should exist in the UK.  If it does exist, is it self-centred and materialistic or giving back to 'the community'?  Now, combine that with the blood-pressure inflater on private v. state schools...  I can't wait!

UN Fellowship for People of African Descent

As part of the UN International Year for People of African Descent, the UN is inviting appications to a Fellowship programme to widen knowledge of the UN and Human Rights issues.

For criteria and application process - closing date 15 June 2011

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/IYPADFellowshipProgramme.aspx

A sneak glance at Black Voices Network symposium plans

Black Voices Network keynote at early years peace conference

Black Voices Network members Mary Andall-Stanberry, Jane Lane, Dalvir Gill, Meryl Shepherd and Haki Kapasi will be delivering a joint keynote speech at the international conference 'Building Peaceable Communities - The Power of Early Childhood', in Amsterdam, on 13 May. 

 They will share a platform with author and social justice activist Professor Louise Derman-Sparkes, Rina Gill, Associate Director of Policy and Practice at Unicef and Professor Luiz Alberto Olivera Gonçalves, an expert on racial discrimination and educational inequalities in Brazil. 

The Network's joint presentation describes how institutionalised racism works at different levels, gives examples of how early years practitioners challenge inequality through creating safe spaces for debate and highlights training that encourages honest discussion around controversial subjects. 

The Network is also facilitating an interactive workshop to explore these issues in more detail. 

For further information - http://conference.unaglobal.org/home


The Black Voices Network, based in England, is a network of children’s services practitioners bringing together the voluntary and community, government and statutory sectors’ knowledge to influence policy and practice development from an ethnically diverse and racial equality perspective. Through seminars, the network offers a safe space for black and other minority ethnic practitioners to share good practice, learn about new, innovative research and discuss challenges to their career development.

Black Voices Network seeks to become the leading Network in England promoting racial equality through encouraging debate, high quality equality training for all and career development for black practitioners. We want policy makers and service providers to acknowledge racism and commit to eradicating it. 

We define 'black' to include people of African, Asian, Caribbean and any other heritage who are at risk of racist discrimination because of skin colour and/or physical features


http://www.ncb.org.uk/ecu_network/bvn/home.aspx

How to Suppress Discussions on Racism

For those of us who have ever attempted to discuss issues of 'race' and  racism in an internet discussion, we can attest to the blood draining, morale seeping experience it becomes.  You end up trying to construct a coherent argument while ducking the flame throwers hidden behind ludicrous 'names', and of questionable intent.  The Guardian journalist, Joseph Harker, expressed his frustration in 'Balancing the Blogs'.  I didn't check the comments below.  I wanted to retain both morale and blood.

I have now found their source text.
http://coffeeandink.dreamwidth.org/435419.html

Now we can shape our defence!

United Nations International Year for People of African Descent

Taken from the statement by Secretary General, Ban-ki Moon:-

Time has come to pay tribute to the contributions made by people of African descent to

the human family, to the advancement of the political, economic, social and cultural

development of our societies.

We have to acknowledge that people of African descent are among those most affected

by the scourge of racism. Too often, they face denial of basic rights such as access to

quality health services and education. They are also affected by more subtle

manifestations of discriminatory practices such as demographic overrepresentation in

detention centres...

All Member States are encouraged to participate in activities, however no UK events are recorded in the calendar of events.  Are we really a post-racial society where 'race' doesn't matter?

Well - the following quote is from the Sunday Times film critic's review of the fantasy superhero film 'Thor' - '... and The Wire's Idris Elba, as the warrior guardian of Asgard's entry gate, Heimdall.  Talk about tokenism: a black guy in a Nordic myth.  The funny thing is, Elba's character is essentially a doorman with a big sword.'

Interpreting this as Landesman complaining about tokenisn AND stereotyping, I still wondered about the concern for 'reality' in a mythical, fantasy world.  If 'race' matters in fantasyland, it can hardly be consequential in the lived world.
 

From birth to Oxbridge

In the Guardian newpaper on 30 April, the MP for Tottenham, David Lammy and Cambridge classics don, Mary Beard, discuss access to Britain's top universities. 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/apr/30/conversation-oxbridge-admissions

The exchange was triggered by the MP gaining stats. about UK black students' poor access to some Oxbridge colleges, though for anyone checking out University Challenge, that can hardly be a surprise.

The 'race' element became lost in the discussion.  David Lammy highlighted geography and class.  Mary Beard told an anecdote about speaking in Harrow about twice in her 25-year in Cambridge, inspiring one of two comprehensive students to successfully apply to Cambridge.  She seemed to view this as a success. 

However, Mary Beard also talked about a joined up thinking in education between age 5 and 25.  I would argue that the education starts earlier than that - from birth onwards.  We are not just talking literacy and numeracy, but the 'extra' education that makes children of black and minority ethnic background believe they can achieve when so many subtle messages tell them they can't.

It is discomfiting to believe that young children judge skin colour from an early age, absorbing the values of the society they live in.  But more than 50 years of research shows that they do.  We are doing children a disservice to expect them to be selectively colour blind.  We should be encouraging children's natural curiosity about the world, nurturing their sense of social justice and preparing ourselves to answer their awkward questions.