Following George Floyd’s murder, conversations around race were thrust into the global mainstream sphere in a completely unprecedented way. At the time, these talks did not fall off the news agenda within hours, as has typically been the case. Instead, the world witnessed a seismic, if largely temporary, shift in consciousness.
Two years on though and many have argued that not enough has changed for all the corporate taking-of-the-knee and pledges of solidarity with Black people that we saw in 2020.
The more traditional and established areas of journalism such as Politics, Health and Sport boost important developments and narratives around people, policies and personalities; the intersectionality of race and identity folds into that.
Yet it’s invariably overlooked, as the perspectives of racialised communities are sidelined within a society that views everything through the lens of whiteness.
And yet: we exist.
From the recent upsurge in Black Lives Matter demonstrations which sparked the largest racial justice movement in UK history to the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 pandemic on ethnic minority groups, these stories count.
From the plight of Gypsy, Traveller and Roma communities to the launch of South Asian Heritage Month, these goings-on are newsworthy.
So, why not have a dedicated newsletter to highlight such matters?
The Race Report seemed like an appropriate title given the Sewell Report, released last year, which reduced the valid, uncomfortable lived experiences of Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities to mere illusions. This newsletter will keep it real.
It’s also not lost on me that the widely-accursed Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities report was sanctioned by a racial-slur using prime minister who is being ousted from Downing Street as I type.
This will be the first newsletter from a national publication in Britain that’s dedicated to race - but hopefully not the last. Every fortnight, on a Tuesday morning, I’ll be updating you on fresh perspectives from within Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. I look forward to bringing you a run-down of the latest dispatches in this area.
The inevitable trauma that underpins much of our experiences in the UK against a backdrop of systemic inequalities will be off-set by triumph too, hence the ‘Good news of the week’ section of the newsletter which will highlight positive, aspirational and fun news items.
The newsletter will fill you in on fresh Twitter spats - because who doesn’t love a bit of beef? - and top-lines; offerings of must-read political features, new releases, comment pieces and a quoteof the week too.
This will be your essential fortnightly bulletin that examines all the big stories, latest talk and up-to-date analysis in front of and, crucially, behind the headlines.
Welcome, one and all; walk with me.
Sign up to The Race Report, which launches on Tuesday 19 July, by putting your email address in the box at the top of this article, or via our newsletters page.
