The University of Westminster is continuing its work with colleagues and students to bring cultural change through joining the ‘Union Black: Britain’s Black cultures and steps to anti-racism’ programme.
‘Union Black: Britain’s Black cultures and steps to anti-racism’ is a six-hour course which provides learners with an understanding of the origins and experience of Black British history and culture, as well as a critical appreciation of the concepts of intersectionality and race as a social construct, equipping them with the knowledge and tools to make positive change happen.
The course will celebrate and provide personal insights into the lived experience of Black British history and culture by looking beyond commonplace narratives such as those of slavery and oppression, to positive and affirming stories of the role and impact of Black British history from Tudor times to today. It is intended to respect and affirm Black British history, culture and experience, while giving tools and confidence to all learners to choose to become anti-racist. Learners will leave the course with new agency and the knowledge and tools to make positive change happen.
The initiative builds on the University’s Black Lives Matter commitment plan to ensure an actively anti-racist, inclusive and safe environment for all of its community to study and work in. The announcement also arrives during Black History Month which forms part of Westminster’s broader Black History Year to showcase the stories, events and initiatives that reflect the richness of the University.
Examples of topics that the course will cover include Black British history and the social construction of race, exploring the importance of anti-racist agenda and intersectionality and creating agency and become a catalyst for change. Taking part in the programme aims to enable learners to appreciate and explain the outlines of Black British history; understand concepts of intersectionality and social construction of race; critically investigate and question narratives of race, racism, non-racist and anti-racist; and develop confidence and agency, practical skills and tools to enable learners to choose to be anti-racist, challenge bias and create allyship.
The course is run by Santander Universities UK in partnership with The Open University and FutureLearn to create an educational learning platform for colleagues and students across all UK universities. It will run in twice-yearly cohorts for the next three years, and learners will be able to complete in their own time on the FutureLearn platform, receiving a digital certificate upon completion.
Talking about the course, Professor Alex Hughes, co-chair of the University’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Committee said: “Attention to equality, equity, diversity and inclusion is central to who we are at Westminster. We are delighted to be partnering with Santander Universities UK to bring this ground-breaking programme to the University, and wish all of its participants well for their learning. We would like to ask colleagues to draw the programme to their students’ and colleagues’ attention so that as many people as possible can participate.”
Find out more about the programme on the Santander Scholarships platform.
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