Background
This morning (29 July 2024) Anne Palmer tweeted a ‘save the date’ news, announcing that on 13 December 2024 there is to be another Race Equality Networking Dinner; this time in London. So far, there have been two such events in Luton where the movement was started and one in Birmingham.
Having come to England in 1970 as a 12-year-old I have been a participant in postwar multicultural education ever since. Having begun my education at the Steward Street Immigrant Reception Centre (in those days newly arrived immigrants were required to begin our education in such separate centres). After two terms there, for three years I attended a secondary school. Here, on the first day a tall white boy picked me up, banged me against the wall and said: “we don’t want any more fucking Pakis in this school”. After putting me down he took a bow and was cheered by everyone in my 3rd Year class. Later, I contributed to multicultural education in several roles – as a Youth Worker; school teacher; Education Officer at Wolverhampton Race Equality Council; college lecturer (for 13 years I was Deputy Director of Equal Rights and Management Unit at Bilston Community College); schools adviser for 10 years at Birmingham Advisory Support Services and then for the past 15 years as a consultant in education and equalities. I currently chair the Education Subcommittee of Birmingham Race Impact Group, for whom we have produced an education position paper. BRIG is where REND fits in.
It was a welcome experience to see 300 people gathered in Birmingham on 28 June 2024. My main purpose in attending was not so much the evening itself (though that was important, especially seeing the multiracial gathering) but what results from it that brings about more racial equality in education in the city and beyond.
The following text is based on my own record of the evening in Birmingham, 28 June 2024, what I heard and took away. I take full responsibility for its accuracy.
White-only jobs (because white people are better than us)
The elephant in the room (in Luton, with a population similarly diverse as Birmingham); the schools did not reflect the ethnicity of the communities that they served. The (minority) children in the schools are encouraged to dream big, to become anything in the whole world as long as it is not wanting to become a headteacher (because that job is reserved for white people). If you looked at the number of black people in school leadership it’s SHOCKING (original emphasis). Another statistic that is shocking is how long minorities last in headship.
The problem tickles down; representation at the leadership level is poor. Full stop. No one from minoritised backgrounds is saying that we want positive discrimination.
I never want to be in a leadership position because of the colour of my skin. Nor do I not want to be in a leadership position, because of the colour of my skin. What we have to do is to enable people, to give people the opportunity to flourish to reach the top.
We say to people you are so good that you can be head of maths or head of science. But that is as far as you go. The jobs above are not for you. (They are for white people who are always better than you).
Recruitment in education as elsewhere happens through networks. You can track a head and also who came with them from their last school. When a deputy gets a headship who moves with them! People take their networks with them.
Commuter teachers
In a diverse community like Birmingham (Luton is the same) we have people who come together for events. But beyond that they live in silos and in isolation from each other. After the event some will end up in villages and outer areas and some will end up driving home to Alum Rock. Both come together at 9 am and are brilliant in the classroom. Both serve the Birmingham community very well. But they don’t understand each other (because of living in silos). And when two people don’t understand each other the barriers between them continue.
Network dinners like this are about bringing people together, from ethnic minorities who want to progress and from white communities who can be their allys. Give them the opportunity so both of them can connect, to talk together so that things will change.
So the most important part of this dinner is networking. Don’t just stay with the people you came with. Meet new people. Connect with someone you don’t know or you may not connect with them were it not for this opportunity. Connect with someone with whom you have nothing in common. Connect with someone that is very different from you. Be brave. Be bold. Just go up to them and start a conversation.
The world is hostile for minority children
The key thing is that we are here trying to find a way to make a difference. We can never forget who we are and how we got here. I got here because of family, friends and allys. Yes, I am black. But I don’t want my experience to be just another story or helping us to understand the barriers I faced.
We know the world out there is not a simple meritocracy. Our children have to be taught that yes they will have to work hard, harder than others; also that there is nothing wrong with their brain. They have the capacity to do whatever they choose to do.
Our children also have to be taught that there are people out there who are opposed to their presence in those spaces. Those people are of the view that you are not supposed to be there. And they will actively seek to trip you up. So, you have to be strong in yourself, understand who you are and take the opportunities that are in front of you and others you have to create for yourself.
Sometimes we are led to believe that there is not a problem about racial equity. If you look at the very diverse publicity and marketing campaigns you can easily come to the conclusion that job is done. If you watch television at certain times you see global majority people everywhere. In the real world, in our organisations and in our structures, it’s not that easily fixed, like it may be in a marketing or public relations campaign.
Our children stand in the street and see people like them but the same children, when they are in the classroom, they don’t see people like themselves. Why? We have teachers who are stuck in their jobs and who just can’t get through to the leadership positions. Some reach the middle leader level and then no further. We need to acknowledge that barriers exist. Barriers are there to keep you in your place. We need good mentors who can help us to navigate the next steps and then when we get there we help someone else to travel the same path.
Our children, our teachers, our CEOs, all of us need such support. Of course there are obstacles. It’s important to be supported how to overcome the obstacles.
We need to look ahead at the next steps but we also need to look behind, to make sure that the space we vacate is being filled by others. I am talking about the pipeline. Without the pipeline we will not achieve our diverse organisations.
(All were asked to stand). There are 300 of us in this space. That is 300 different ways to change our world in education. Just sitting on our bottoms and do nothing is not what is needed.
Thank you for coming tonight but more importantly for what we are going to make happen as we go forward.
There is clear racism at play in our schools especially when it comes to Black boys.
Doors close because of the colour of one’s skin.
Positive Action
The MERITT scheme was responsible for bringing many of the current cohort of black and Asian educators within Birmingham, thanks to the great Tim Brighouse. Who is going to run a similar programme now?! The task of black and Asian entry into the teaching workforce is as hard as ever.
A diverse teacher workforce is better at preparing children for a diverse world.
Birmingham Diocese has put in place its own MERITT programme, with the result already of 4 headteachers and 2 Assistant Headteachers from the global majority. The diocese has also shown leadership in addressing diversity in the boardroom.
In 2024 for schools in Birmingham not to have at least one global majority senior leader is unacceptable. It is unacceptable for MAT boards and local governing boards to not have global majority members in proportion to their community. It is also unacceptable for schools and leaders not to have antiracism training.
The day before Rishi Sunak MP was called a fucking Paki.
Pledge to do something
This (event, gathering) is useful. It is wonderful but it’s not enough. What are YOU (original emphasis) going to do as a result of tonight? What are you going to do afterwards, that promotes race equality in education? It could be a micro action. Think about your values. Think about your voice. Don’t just walk out thinking about the dinner tonight. Think about the future and how you will change it for everyone.
On the tables there were pledge cards for people to record what they were going to do afterwards.
Today is about the ‘seed and change’, for the coming years. Change is not immediate. The seeds can be planted now. The green shoots will show. Our four recent appointments were from the global majority at senior level. That would have been unthinkable five, six years ago. Let’s make this evening start of a movement for racial equality in Birmingham.