Westminster hosts third Challenging Racisms Conference

The conference was led by Dr Deborah Husbands, Chartered Psychologist and Reader in Psychology, and was part of the Quintin Hogg Trust-funded Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) programme named Community and Communities: Supporting and Celebrating Diversity at the University of Westminster that is led by Professor Dibyesh Anand, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Global Engagement and Employability. 

The pair took to the stage first to welcome the audience and set the tone for a day of meaningful dialogue and exploration. This was followed by a keynote address by Professor Lisa-Dionne Morris, Founder of Global Ethnic Majority Success (GEMS) Executive Coaching. 

About the keynote speech, Dr Husbands said: "If we are to challenge diverse forms of racism, we must see the issues people experience through an intersectional lens. These are complex and multiple. Our conference keynote speaker, Professor Lisa-Dionne Morris, clearly stated that the toll of racism results in a loss of talent and productivity in organisations. When we can see the link between devaluing an individual because of their race and how this potentially devalues our University, we are compelled to have honest conversations about our conduct, processes and policies and better able to offer authentic allyship, advocacy and support to our communities."

Throughout the event there were a variety of presentations that highlighted critical issues around race and identity. The Intersections of Faith, Belief and Race panel, chaired by The Reverend Dr Matthew Linfoot, featured educator and researcher Memoona Khan, Chine McDonald, Director of Theos, and Rabbi Michael Pollak. The panellists spoke from the perspective of their respective faiths, exploring the interrelationship between ethnicity, race and identity on religion and spiritual belonging. 

Throughout the event there were a variety of presentations that highlighted critical issues around race and identity. The Intersections of Faith, Belief and Race panel, chaired by The Reverend Dr Matthew Linfoot, featured educator and researcher Memoona Khan, Chine McDonald, Director of Theos, and Rabbi Michael Pollak. The panellists spoke from the perspective of their respective faiths, exploring the interrelationship between ethnicity, race and identity on religion and spiritual belonging. The warm and friendly discussion explored structural discrimination imposed on faith and race identities, internalised inequalities rooted in historical interpretations and the outward projection of the ‘other’ which can occur from within religions.

From left to right: Rabbi Michael Pollak, Chine McDonald, Memoona Khan and Reverend Dr Matthew Linfoot

The Gendered Racism panel was chaired by Sobia Razzaq, Senior Lecturer in Law and Co-chair of Women of Westminster, and featured three distinguished speakers: Dianne Greyson, founder of the Ethnicity Pay Gap Campaign; Jenny Garrett, an executive coach and leadership trainer; and Muneera Pilgrim, poet, writer and broadcaster. The women discussed data around the ethnicity pay gap, their own experiences as women of colour navigating the workplace and how poetry can serve as a liberatory tool for community connection. Their stories converge on the critical need to address and dismantle systemic barriers marginalised groups face, highlighting the intersections of race, gender and identity in the fight for equity and inclusion.

After lunch, Dr Claire Robertson, Co-chair of the Colleague Disability Network, hosted a discussion with Hamied Haroon from the University of Manchester, exploring how disabilities, both visible and hidden, impact life at university for students and colleagues. The discussion highlighted the importance of creating a comfortable environment for everyone, encouraging self-acceptance and inclusivity universally.

The session on Navigating Sexuality and Racial Identity brought together diverse and compelling voices to reflect on joy, hope and progress for minoritised and racialised sexualities. The session was facilitated by Dr Thomas Moore, Interim Head of College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Viven Rao, Global Opportunities Support Officer at the University of Westminster. They were joined by Yasmin Benoit, a British model, asexual activist, writer and speaker, Mohak Kataria, an engineer and podcaster who talks to parents of South Asian Queer kids on their journeys of acceptance and support for the children, and K Bailey Obazee, Founder and Director of PRIM, a platform for Black and queer storytelling. 

From left to right: Viven Rao, Yasmin Benoit, Mohak Kataria, K Bailey Obazee and Dr Thomas Moore

The session unpacked the power of storytelling for enabling a platform for understanding the racial dimensions of sexuality and asexuality, coming out stories and the importance of storytelling for symbolic and substantive representation. 

Dr Moore said: “Our work to grow student success must be informed by intersectional perspectives of lived experiences of race and sexuality. The discussion helped us appreciate the role that stories play in representing struggles for racial and sexual inclusion.”

The day came to a close with another keynote from Professor Morris who was joined in conversation with Dawn Bonfield MBE, Founder and Director of Towards Vision, a company working towards a vision of diversity and inclusion in engineering. Professor Anand and Dr Husbands then took to the stage once more to reflect on the day and inspire those in attendance to continue these conversations.

Professor Anand said: "To be meaningful and impactful, work to make our sector and society antiracist has to be relentless. Every year, we are learning something new from our conference series and every year we recognise there is a lot more to do. We continue to be open to ideas and collaborations from within and beyond the higher education sector for our commitment to challenge racisms.”

This conference directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 10: Reduced Inequalities. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.  

Find out more about Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Westminster.