Supremely stupid: Fred Ashmore on the challenging work of understanding racism

‘Our discussions were often heated and quite emotional. Uncovering and recognising feelings is hard work.’

The minute about racism from November’s Meeting for Sufferings (MfS), and the minute from Britain Yearly Meeting trustees on the same subject, were rather shocking. Both invite us to consider whether our Society has racist attitudes embedded in its structures. Are we ready to reach a well-informed view about this? Do we know enough about racism?

I suspect that most Friends would say that we’re quite well educated about racism. But try dipping into Black and British, the well-respected work by David Olusoga. It won’t take you long to encounter surprises and, by the end, you will be wiser (and, I expect, sadder). I do recommend the book, but it’s a hefty work; no short cuts unless you prefer the children’s version. It helped me realise that my good intentions had allowed me to assume virtue and competence. But I was in fact woefully ignorant, despite having already tried to improve myself.

There is no shortage of books explaining the importance of action to combat racism. These can induce feelings of guilt and inadequacy, prompting readers to reject them. One term for this type of response is ‘white fragility’ – shooting the messenger because you don’t like the message. The books come from people with lived experience of racism, and it is not for people from the white majority culture to deny that experience.

I expect that many of us will have read some or several of these books, but I have not, until recently, found that they convinced me to adopt any specific response. There is one book, however, which did go a long way to convince me to take actions – and I am still engaging in those actions, with the strong expectation that they will continue to develop. That book is Me and White Supremacy by Layla Saad, a teacher who has lived in several different societies and has seen white supremacy at work.

It is not a traditional narrative or textbook; it’s a workbook for people who want to understand their own role in white supremacy. That phrase is not one which all Quakers would accept, though there seems to be more willingness now to recognise the widespread privilege among us. Although it is not a textbook, Me and White Supremacy has plenty of information, presented ‘for our comfort and discomfort’.

Layla Saad explains why she wrote the book, the way she wants you to use it, and offers an invitation to understand. Over twenty-eight days, readers take aspects of white supremacy one at a time, with an encouragement to keep a journal of responses. You can do it alone, and redo it again and again if you wish, but Saad commends the idea of a book circle, in which those using the book can enhance their learning and take care of themselves and their companions.

I spent three months working through Me and White Supremacy with two wise and weighty Friends, and it was immensely challenging and helpful. I didn’t enjoy it, and our discussions were often heated and quite emotional. Uncovering and recognising feelings is hard work. That’s one reason why we spaced out our discussion sessions to one every two or three days; we couldn’t take it any faster. At the end of the book, day twenty-eight calls for making some commitments, and setting up arrangements for being held to account. That’s where the three of us have reached so far, working as an accountability group.

I would recommend this book and the associated work to Friends, as a next step in recognising and acknowledging our own positions and involvements in UK society, and to talk seriously about the ways in which we might work together towards change. When we get there, we might even be ready to decide about collective action.

There are several aspects to doing the work, foremost of which is to look after yourself and those with whom you share the journey. Also, do recognise that this is not a temporary fix. It is the start of a profound spiritual commitment towards justice that is likely to touch all areas of your life. As MfS minuted, ‘Our testimonies to equality and truth demand that we engage in a drive towards real change, turning our declared intentions into reality.’

Britain Yearly Meeting trustees minute (BYMT-2020-11-12). Responding to racism: next steps

‘Racism exists within the Religious Society of Friends in Britain and we must tackle it. This is a hard thing to admit, but recognising the problem is an important step in addressing it. We need to speak to each other lovingly about these issues. And we already have tools to help us. It is time for trustees to show visible leadership on this issue – within BYM and more widely – and to be publicly accountable for what we do. Friends have been responding to the call from Yearly Meeting in 2017 to examine our own diversity: Meeting for Sufferings has been leading this work. This summer, issues of racism have come to the fore through public protests and the Black Lives Matter movement. We receive two papers: one setting out how BYM is already responding to racism (BYMT-2020-11-10), and one suggesting some possible next steps for the charity and trustees (BYMT-2020-11-10i). We recognise that there are many kinds of discrimination in our society of which racism is only one. Some people are multiply disadvantaged by the interplay of gender, class and disability prejudices as well as race. Nevertheless, a focus on racism is needed now. We need to work on racism within us as individuals and as a body of trustees and will read, think and arrange training to educate ourselves. We ask our committees to have these conversations too and challenge themselves as individuals and committee members. We commit to becoming an anti-racist employer, and to making the resources available to make this a reality. We ask Management Meeting to bring us a plan of the steps that will be needed. We commit to ensuring that anti-racism is built into the design of all BYM’s programmes and activities, and to working with committees to monitor this. We agree that continuing to support work with Quaker meetings and communities on diversity and inclusion, including anti-racism work, is a priority and we are pleased that the Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator post is continuing. We ask Quaker Life Central Committee to oversee this work. We agree to appoint a trustee to serve as a diversity and anti-racism champion to help plan and monitor this change including working with Management Meeting to develop a set of clear performance objectives for BYM’s work on racism so that we can monitor its progress.’

Non-confidential minutes of Britain Yearly Meeting trustees’ meetings are available from the recording clerk’s office at Friends House.

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