In observation of the UN’s International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and inspired by UNITED’s Action Week Against Racism, Cambridge UCU, Cambridge SU and the End Everyday Racism campaign are co-hosting a week of activities in Cambridge to advocate for renewed focus on active anti-racist practice at the University.
Programme
Mon 17 March – The antiracist academy: introducing the End Everyday Racism project. Join the End Everyday Racism team and project partners for a discussion about racism and antiracism in Cambridge (12.00-13.30, Seminar Room, Department of Sociology, Free School Lane CB2 3RQ).
Tue 18 March – Developing antiracist practice: a collective forum for practitioners. Share experiences of challenging racism and embedding anti-racist practice within the University. With panels on support and allyship, antiracist research practice, understanding discrimination and healing our mental health after discrimination (10.00-15.00, Students’ Union Lounge, University Centre, Granta Place CB2 1RU).
Wed 19 March – Building anti-racist communities. Meet and join University groups involved in antiracism at open stalls under the raised faculty buidling on the Sidgewick Site (12.00-14.00). If you would like a stall for your organisation or society, please complete our registration form.
Wed 19 March – Creative expressions of antiracism: an open mic evening. Join us for an evening of performances in the Students’ Union Lounge (19.00-21.00). Light refreshments will be provided. If you would like to perform at this event (readings, poetry, dance, singing, and more), please complete our registration form.
Thurs 20 March – From South Africa to Palestine: learning from struggles for liberation across the generations. What can today’s movements for racial justice, in Palestine and beyond, learn from past experiences? In this teach in, anti-apartheid activist and campaigner Moyra Samuel will be joined by Dr Wesam Amer, Dean of the Faculty of Communications at Gaza University to discuss the parallels and contrasts between the struggles for justice in South Africa and today’s activism in solidarity with Palestinians facing genocide, war crimes and apartheid (13.00-15.00, Little Hall, Sidgwick Site, Sidgwick Avenue CB3 9DA).
Fri 21 March – The Structure Within: a shared language to counteract internalised oppression. Join the launch of The Structure Within, a creative project to develop a shared language to counteract internalised oppression, which all too often undermines agendas for social transformation (11.00-12.30, Sociology Seminar Room, Department of Sociology, Free School Lane).
Fri 21 March – Antiracist organising assembly: a call to action. Join our antiracist organising assembly with speakers from Stand up to Racism, local refugee solidarity organisations and campus trade unions followed by organising workshop sessions (13.00-15.00, Lecture Theatre A, Arts School, New Museums Site).
Themes
- Challenging institutional racism: From pay and pension gaps to “everyday” forms of racism, discrimination and oppression, how do we build an anti-racist culture from the bottom up across the University?
- Defending refugees and migrants: From Trump to Farage, both racist crackdowns by the state and a culture of scapegoating migrants is on the rise. The University is a community of learning which is literally made by migration and the interchange of ideas and people across borders. How can we mobilise our shared resources and knowledge to combat anti-migrant racism?
- Learning from the anti-apartheid struggle: UN anti-racism day on 21 March commemorates the Sharpeville massacre, a milestone in the fight against apartheid in South Africa. What can today’s movements for racial justice in Palestine and beyond learn from the experiences of this history?