It is not enough to be shocked by racism anymore

Putting my thoughts to paper/a word doc has been extra difficult and the reason for that and why this article is a bit different, is that since June last year, I've written about race 21 times in these Sunday articles. Every time there is an incident, which happens a lot, I say to myself I won't write about it but then reflect on the importance of speaking up. However, it's also important to protect our energy.

It has been a tough week. A week on since there was such an excitement and build up to the England final, equally a low followed. Not just a low from the loss. It was less about the loss this time, but the racism that ensued. The unfortunate knowing that when we saw what happened, some of us automatically thought about what those three black players would face. That says a lot!

I haven’t had the words to describe how I’ve felt over the last week but I know I’m not alone in this. How do you deal with watching what happened, seeing some of those horrific tweets of abuse and sit with the reality that this is the country we live in, the country I was born in. It’s upsetting. It’s a reminder that if you’re a person of a colour, you are made to feel that you constantly have to prove yourself above others and don’t belong.

Whilst there has been a focus on the wonderful roles Saku, Sancho and Rashford have played in society, giving back to communities, let me remind you: Black people do not have to justify their existence. Even if Marcus Rashford didn’t feed thousands of children because the government refused to, he deserves the same respect as every other player, for the human being that he is. A post on Instagram summed this small minded approach with the quote ‘British when they win, immigrants when they lose’.

We are talking about basic human rights. Respect. The aftermath of Sunday scarred the week for me, hearing of attacks on Black people in London and some who were too scared to leave their homes because of what happened. This took me straight back to June last year but was made so real, the fact it was on our doorstep.

So….learning from what we did last year and all the positives that came from Allies stepping up, how many of you reached out to your Black employees? If you’re still in a position where you don’t want to say after seeing what happened on Sunday, you have more work to do. The world is opening up again and in an unsafe way in my opinion. Don’t forget the context of people’s lived experiences that will impact them at work and their ability to do their job effectively.

This post is a reminder for everyone who posted the Black square all those months ago:

• Have you ever not been able to leave your house due to the colour of your skin?
• Don’t be silent - being silent is complicit 
• Don’t be a bystander - if you have witnessed a racist incident, report it, call it out

The books are there, the podcasts are there, the articles are there. It can’t be any clearer that people need to step up and not be bystanders anymore when it comes to educating themselves on racism. There are enough people out there who completely disagree with what’s happened but they aren’t saying anything about it.

It is not enough to be shocked, saddened by this and for one, Black people don’t want to hear this. What is the action you are taking to dismantle racism? What are you committing to do to support your Black friends/employees?