Resources to dismantle patriarchy, white supremacy, imperialism and critiques of capitalism
Watch and listen
There is are so many British professors like Beverley Bryan, Stella Dadzie, Suzanne Scafe and American (bell hooks, Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou) were dedicated to teaching us to think critically and increase our empathy. I have compiled a Youtube list of conversations/interviews, I like to listen to them whilst I wash my hair.
14 of the best films and documentaries to educate yourself on racism and Black oppression
Netflix’s Black Lives Matter listing is here.
Sonya Renee Taylor - If Black Trans Don’t Matter Then No One Elses Will
The struggles for justice by the families of people that have died in police custody. In 1969 David Oluwale became the first black person to die in police custody in Britain. Many others have died since then. None of the police officers involved have been convicted of these deaths. In this documentary, the families of these victims ask "Why not?" This is a blow by blow account of the relentless struggles of the families as they find out how they lost their loved ones in extremely violent deaths at the hands of police officers. Each family is met with a wall of official secrecy and the film documents how they unite and challenge this together. The documentary uses powerful exclusive footage filmed over a five year period and witnesses the families pain and anger at the killings. It documents the fight to retrieve the bodies for burial, the mockery of police self-investigation and the collusion of the legal system in the deaths. The film asks why an accused killer in a police uniform is not judged by the same standards as the rest of society.
The Unwanted: The Secret Windrush Files - BBC iplayer
David Olusoga opens secret government files to show how the Windrush scandal and the ‘hostile environment’ for black British immigrants has been 70 years in the making.
David reveals how today’s scandal is rooted in the secrets of the past. The first Windrush generation were Commonwealth citizens - many of them ex-servicemen - coming to rebuild war-torn Britain. Yet even before arriving, they were viewed by the government with hostility. Civil servants and MPs warned of dire consequences if what they called a ‘coloured element’ was introduced into the UK. PM Clement Attlee even suggested diverting the Windrush passengers to east Africa - to pick peanuts.
LSE public lecture programme
The LSE have gathered many inspiring feminist Black voices in their public lecture programme, including government ministers and PMs across Africa, Vice Chancellors from America and the Caribbean, Heads of Charities and Professors in the UK (of which there only 27 Black women).
Is Africa Rising: a personal perspective from Winnie Byanyima
Crisis Politics and the Challenge of Intersectional Solidarity
How We Judge Others' Personality: gender, ethnicity and questionnaires
Investing in Equality: the role of capital and justice in addressing inequality
HeForShe #GetFree tour: panel discussion on developing an inclusive campus culture
Above the Parapet - Women in Public Life: Professor Ruth Simmons
Read
These are my priority books to read because they focus on the diverse lives and history of Black people with a focus on resisting racism and gender norms.
Staying Power: The History of Black People in Britain – Peter Fryer
To Exist is to Resist: Black Feminism in Europe – Emejulu & Sobande
Barracoon – The Story of the Last Slave – Zora Neale Hurston
Zami: A New Spelling of my Name – Audre Lorde
Call Me Woman – Ellen Kuzwayo
Insurgent Empire: Anti-colonial Resistance and British Dissent – Priyamvada Gopal
The Life and Struggles of Our Mother Walatta Petros: A Seventeenth-Century African Biography of an Ethiopian Woman – Belcher & Kleiner
Black British Feminism – Heidi Safia Mirza
Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent from the Ancient Egyptian to the Present – Margaret Busby
Books I’ve read and recommend
Coretta: My Life, My Love, My Legacy Paperback - Corretta Scott King
Without Coretta, our world would look so different. She is so inspiring and founded institutions to train civil rights leaders globally. Her impact is immeasurable.
Letter from a Birmingham Jail – Martin Luther King
Discusses at length about the danger of the white moderate who favour order over peaceful demonstrations to overturn unjust white supremacist lawsEloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower - Britney Cooper
Dust Tracks on a Road – Zora Neale Hurston
Negroland – Margo Jefferson
Autobiographical, Jefferson talks at length about colourism, class and wealth and the deadly consequences of maintaining status and powerHalf of a Yellow Sun – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
We Need New Stories: Challenging the Toxic Myths Behind Our Age of Discontent– Nesrine Malik
Malik grew up in Sudan, Saudi Arabia and went to Uni in London. The UK media is brilliant at shaming Africa and the Middle East and Nesrine is great at calling out the hypocrisy of claiming our patriarchal system is better than anothersHeart of the Race: Black Womens Lives in Britain – Beverly Bryan
Is incredibly moving testimony of Black women’s lives. Lots of accounts from nurses and caregivers, helping me imagine those women that came before my MamaThe Will To Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love – bell hooks
I am a huge fan of bell hooks, she has loads of lectures on YouTube on love and how to live life free of dominationDear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions: The Inspiring Guide to Raising a Feminist 01 – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Mighty Be Our Powers: How Sisterhood, Prayer, and Sex Changed a Nation at War - A Memoir Leymah Gbowee
This is a must-read biography. Peace activist led a women’s grass-root movement to end civil war. By putting women and children first, they created peace and established organisations across Africa and internationally to counter patriachal domination.
The Underground Railroad – Colson Whitehead
Small Island and The Long Song – Andrea Levy
Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race - Reni Eddo Lodge
All about Love: New Visions - bell hooks
Rock My Soul: Black People and Self-Esteem Communion: The Female Search for Love (Love Song to the Nation) Paperback – bell hooks
Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race - Reni Eddo Lodge
Communion: The Female Search for Love (Love Song to the Nation) Paperback – bell hooks
Salvation: Black People and Love - bell hooks
Articles
Reni Eddo-Lodge: 'The debate on racism is a game to some and I don't want to play’
“The roots of the 'Hostile Environment' go a long way back – to the racial categories of the British Empire, and the classing of Jewish refugees as 'aliens'.”
Marcia Rigg: You Think Police Brutality Is Just A US Issue? Think Again
The emotional impact of watching white people wake up to racism in real-time
Black owned bookshops to support
Round Table Books New Beacon Books Pepukayi Books Books of Africa Jacaranda Book Love We Represent
Resource for parents/educators
This is your one stop shop for everything black history for kids. For decades, we have longed for black history to be part of the national curriculum in both our primary and secondary schools and still today we are waiting. KidsBlackHistory has been created to enable young children from all over the globe the privilege to learn black history beyond what is told in schools during one month. Children will learn what the continent of Africa has offered society and the beauty of melanin in the world today.
“How To Create an Anti-Racist School Setting”
My friends Shereen Chung-Blake and Sarah Carrington have created a fantastic resource for starting anti-racist conversations at your children’s school. Read and share widely!
You must read this and share with parents and educators
No small talk - instagram account Politics, politricks, books, bits and bun babylon.
British-slave history resources - free
Empire: the Controversies of British Imperialism - University of Exeter
Legacies of British-slave ownership UCL
Colonial slavery shaped modern Britain and we all still live with its legacies. The slave-owners were one very important means by which the fruits of slavery were transmitted to metropolitan Britain. We believe that research and analysis of this group are key to understanding the extent and the limits of slavery's role in shaping British history and leaving lasting legacies that reach into the present. The stories of enslaved men and women, however, are no less important than those of slave-owners, and we hope that the database produced in the first two phases of the project, while at present primarily a resource for studying slave-owners, will also provide information of value to those researching enslaved people.
Donate to Black campaigning charities and petitions
Support these vital grass roots campaigned led by people who are experienced in tackling violence against Black women, tackling white supremacy and uplifting Black people and children. Can you ask your company to support? I got two of the charities below included in my companies BLM fundraising efforts and they’ll double what what staff raise. Don’t be afraid to ask.
The National Memorial Family Fund
The National Memorial Family Fund is the first permanent national resource of its kind specifically for those that are affected by deaths in custody. We will make small grants available for families and their campaign groups across the United Kingdom to provide practical domestic assistance, to further the work of their own campaigns or to assist them in engaging in a range of other local, regional or national campaigns, events and initiatives.
United Families & Friends Campaign
The United Families & Friends Campaign (UFFC), is a coalition of those affected by deaths in police, prison and psychiatric custody, supports others in similar situations. Established in 1997 initially as a network of Black families, over recent years the group has expanded and now includes the families and friends of people from varied ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
UK-based, Black feminist organisation. We are the only national second-tier women’s organisation dedicated to addressing violence against Black and minoritised women and girls i.e. women and girls which are defined in policy terms as Black and ‘Minority Ethnic’ (BME).
At Black Minds Matter U.K. our mission is to connect Black individuals and families with free professional mental health services across the U.K. We aim to do this by making mental health topics relevant and accessible for all Black people in the U.K.
UK Black Pride is Europe’s largest celebration for LGBTQ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Middle Eastern and Latin American descent. We produce an annual celebration during pride month, as well as a variety of activities throughout the year in and around the UK, which also promote and advocate for the spiritual, emotional, and intellectual health and wellbeing of the communities we represent.
Fundraising for the book about the death of Christopher Alder by the UK Police
Christopher Alder was a former paratrooper decorated for his services in the Falklands; he had two children, and was in training for a new career in computer programming. On April 1, 1998, after a night out, Christopher got into a fight outside the Waterfront nightclub in Hull; after being punched in the face, he was briefly knocked unconscious and lost a tooth. An ambulance was called, and Christopher was taken to Hull Royal Infirmary, accompanied by police officers. His injuries were not deemed serious, and he was discharged, after which the police drove him to the police station one mile away. Half an hour later he was dead.
Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust
We work with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds aged 13 to 30 to inspire and enable them to succeed in the career of their choice. We also influence others to create a fairer society in which everyone, regardless of their background, can flourish. A lot has changed since Stephen Lawrence’s murder in a racist attack in 1993, but some things have stayed the same. Too many young people still struggle to succeed because they are disadvantaged by factors beyond their control, such as where they are born, the school they go to, or any discrimination they may face.
100% of profits from clothing sales and 25% of art sales go to charity and you get to pick from the list above.
Petitions
We didn’t forget about Grenfell - Replace all flammable cladding on buildings in the UK
Contact Gavin Williamson Secretary of State for Education
Teach Britain's colonial past as part of the UK's compulsory curriculum
Introduce Mandatory Ethnicity Pay Gap Reporting