Affirmative action: Robert Ashton finds a helpful charity

‘It prompted me to think more deeply about race, prejudice and our testimony to equality.’

I’ve recently been reading William Booth’s excellent book In Darkest England. First published in 1890, Booth writes about recycling, food banks, and enterprises that create employment for people in poverty. Then, these were radical ideas; today they are commonplace. Booth, of course, founded the Salvation Army, and so knew what he was writing about. For a book written 130 years ago, it is surprisingly contemporary – except for some of the language he used.

The title alludes to ‘darkest Africa’, a once-common phrase that says much about Victorian attitudes to race and colour. As the book was published, the British were busy taking control over swathes of Africa. It was common to assume that being white meant being superior.

Booth was a pioneer, but also a man of his time, and so imbued with attitudes that prevailed in Victorian London. We cannot blame him for that, nor sanitise his book, but read it in context. It prompted me to think more deeply about race, prejudice and our testimony to equality, and that is good. Perhaps better is to actually do something – a thought that led me into conversation with Tariq Bashir, who leads a charity called ‘Who Is Your Neighbour?’.

One British Academy report describes Who Is Your Neighbour? as a ‘community dialogue project’, a description that begs exploration. Tariq lives in Yorkshire and describes himself as a Muslim Punjabi Londoner. His charity facilitates conversations in largely-white communities about difficult subjects like race. This is not a top down, ‘you must think this’ approach, but one in which trained facilitators encourage people to be open and honest about their feelings.

A local councillor from South Yorkshire, who attended a session a while back, wrote: ‘a lightbulb moment… An old lady in my ward was talking about Pakistani men and sexual exploitation. Previously I’d have ignored it, or told her she can’t say that. Instead I asked how she knows what she’s saying and about her own experience.’ The goal of Tariq’s team is to spark these lightbulb moments – because then, and only then, will attitudes and behaviours change.

In common with most charities, fundraising is the charity’s most pressing need. It costs close to £1,000 to run a couple of sessions in a suitable community centre. While the impact is not always immediately apparent, those lightbulb moments are repeated when attendees manage to challenge people voicing prejudice.

Every community has its prejudice, often rooted in local history. It is all-too-easy to vent one’s frustration and anger by lashing out at anyone who appears different. I grew up in rural Suffolk and married into a farming family. These communities can be culturally isolated, and prejudice, unless challenged, can be slow to change.It’s reassuring to know that in today’s ‘darkest England’, at least one organisation is sparking lightbulb moments!

Robert is from Leiston Meeting. Learn more about Who Is Your Neighbour? at https://whoisyourneighbour.org.uk.

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