This Tuesday, York Politics Society will be holding an open access panel to discuss police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of the murder of George Floyd.
The panel will see the academics Sharon Moore, Richard Johnson, Kate Leader, Katy Sian, Karim Murji, and Nicole Lindstrom share their takes on the murder of George Floyd and its aftermath. The chair of the discussion, Hamza Abdikadir, spoke to Vision about the importance of conversations :
Discussions on race have not appeared after George Floyd. Instead they’ve been amplified. The UK has a long and dark history with race and it’s time that we come together and have constructive and critical discussions, however emotionally charged they’ll be. We must confront and root out any and all racism and race-based discrimination from society. These discussions play a pivotal role in combating racism and offer constructive steps forward in the fight against racism.
One such “step forward” is the politics departments establishment of an Anti-Racism working group. This group has been set up by students in order to share resources, develop awareness and build anti-racism into academic practice.
Each week a guest editor will take over the department’s Instagram in order to share resources and respond to questions from students. This week has focused on black and mixed-race people’s experiences of racism in the UK and future topics will include intersectionality and allyship.
The actions of the politics department form part of a wider introspection which has resulted in many of the University’s departments pursuing pro-actively antiracist approaches. The history department held an open meeting this Friday aimed at altering departmental practice to promote a more inclusive community and the recent #ShutDownStem strikes called for “real permanent change” within the academic community.
Link to the panel – https://york-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/98856810459
Link to #ShutDownStem article https://www.yorkvision.co.uk/news/shutdownstem/09/06/2020