The University of Westminster marked International Women’s Day on 8 March 2022 with the formal launch of a series of events under the banner of ‘Westminster Conversations: Toward an Anti-Racist University’. The series is part of a broader Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion related programme sponsored by Quintin Hogg Trust and led by University EDI Committee co-chairs Professor Alex Hughes and Professor Dibyesh Anand.
The first event was a lived-experience based discussion involving three senior women leaders within our University on the role of identities, resilience, and leadership in academia and beyond. Dr Deborah Husbands, Co-chair of the Black and Minority Ethnic Network, facilitated a conversation between Professor Alex Hughes, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement and Employability, and Dr Randhir Auluck, Head of the School of Organisations, Economy and Society. The speakers explored the interplay between personal and professional identities, and resilience.
Responding to the session, Dr Auluck said: “As a new member of the University, I was struck by the warmth of welcome as well as frankness of discussion. This is how institutions should be: authentic and honest.” Watch the video of the event.
As part of the second event of the series on 9 March 2022, Professor Dibyesh Anand, Head of School of Social Sciences and Co-chair of the BME Network, facilitated a conversation with an activist educator Dr Gurnam Singh. Dr Singh focused on the difficulties as well as possibilities of challenging racism and colonial forms of knowledge in the Higher Education sector.
Limor Augustin, a Graduate Research Fellow visiting from York St John University, said: “I left energised, better connected and excited to share what I have learned.”
Watch the video of the event.
According to Professor Anand, who is leading the series this year: “The idea behind the events and the series is to provide a platform for different scholars, activists and students to have honest conversations about shifting institutions away from a focus on being non-racist to becoming anti-racist. It is to build a community of like-minded individuals from diverse backgrounds to lead toward cultural change.”
The audience was a mix of students, researchers, colleagues and members of the public. Lonceny Kourouma, a PhD researcher within the Centre for the Study of Democracy, who attended both the events, said: “The events created safe spaces for us to share our lived experiences and find a sense of belonging not only in academia but in general.”
Reflecting on the events, Professor Hughes said: “It was a huge pleasure and privilege to be part of these two Conversations, as a speaker and listener, and to join with colleagues and students to share thinking on the key topics raised. I’m really looking forward to ongoing dialogues on critical issues of equity, diversity and inclusion.”
Dr Husbands added: “Westminster Conversations highlighted issues that are likely to be on the agenda of most universities. However, the University of Westminster boldly opened up the issues for further scrutiny by exploring lived and living experiences of leadership, equality, diversity and inclusion, and a necessary move towards embedding equity through decolonising practices. Being part of these conversations was important for my learning and professional development."
Westminster Conversations series is organising a two-day Anti-Racism conference in collaboration with the student-focused Democratic Education Network on 12 and 13 May 2022. For more information, please contact Grace Egbewole-Adereti at [email protected]
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