It is clear how ethnic disparities within the labour market are linked to other disparities in policy such as housing, and influenced by national crises such as the cost of living crisis. Issues within the labour market leads to wage disparity between minoritised communities and their White counterparts.
The Telling Stories event on 22nd November 2022, was a powerful, social and introspective conversation about the art of storytelling. I know this because I was there. It asked critical questions that were extremely thought-provoking about how the UnMuseum project (as it stands today with this name) will tell stories. But it was also a general conversation for storytellers in all modes and forms, as well as an educational one.
Professor Hakim Adi is the first historian of African heritage to become a professor of history in Britain. He took us on an explorative and educational journey of his research and Black British history through a brilliant presentation. It was a pleasure to listen to Professor Hakim Adi launch his new book, ‘African and Caribbean People in Britain.’
As a woman of mixed Jamaican and English heritage, I, like many others around me have always struggled with appreciating my natural hair as well as understanding its versatility and uniqueness. It is believed that these self-criticisms stem back to colonialism, which changed the way Black people perceived and wore their hair…
As a female, British Asian student, I find myself constantly stuck between two versions of success. Studying economics at a Russell group university comes with the expectations of a six-figure salary, a job in Canary Wharf and a hard-nosed attitude getting you to the top. Whilst I can imagine this life for myself, it feels as though I must forfeit some of my heritage to be part of the finance industry. As a white male dominated sector, there seems to be a culture that perpetuates the Wolf of Wall Street archetype.
My intentions when wearing the hijab have evolved over time, from resistance to society's expectations that women dress a certain way, to yearning for total surrender to Allah, and finally, as an expression of tremendous appreciation. Being a Black Muslim woman and growing up in the Western world has been a journey. I was constantly treated differently from a very young age, first when growing up in Switzerland where the population of Muslims was 5% and parents would advise their children to stay away from me because of my hijab, to moving to England and being faced with constant discrimination at work and in public spaces.
In 1999 my Albanian family decided to immigrate to the UK to seek asylum as Albanians were being ethnically cleansed by the Serbian Army between 1998-1999 because of conflict regarding land, religion and ethnic differences. The conflict first started after the fall of the Ottoman Empire and World War One when British forces incorrectly divided the land leaving millions of Albanians as part of the Kingdom of Serbia.
18th April marks the World Heritage Day. The theme for 2020 “Shared Cultures, Shared Heritage, Shared Responsibility” very much resonates with our Intangible Cultural Heritage Project as it is about reflecting on our our shared cultural heritage and understanding the importance of preserving our culture, history and heritage.
