Black Liberation

“Anti-Blackness is embedded into our societies and institutions. Black people across the world have been dehumanised and oppressed. Anti-Black racism isn’t just overt slurs and prejudice, it is systemic mechanisms and practices that uphold White supremacy. At LUU, we are opposed to Anti-Black racism, in all forms. We want to build a community that recognises, celebrates and uplifts our Black students. The intersectionality of our community needs to be addressed too. Not all Black people are the same and not all Black people experience the same issues. We are committed to Liberation for all Black people.” – Natasha Fowler-Ekar, Equality and Liberation Officer 2021/22

We have conducted research into the experiences of our ‘BAME’ [as referred to in the survey] students and their sense of belonging in our community. The survey responses gave included the following insights:

• Students highlighted that ‘BAME’ is not an appropriate collective term for the individual groups this survey was aimed at, and that it lacks nuance and specificity. We’re looking into moving past the usage of this term, and our internal conversations reflect ongoing wider discussions in this area.
• More respondents agreed that their ethnicity had negatively impacted their experience than those who disagreed with this statement, however the highest number of students were ambivalent.
• The majority of respondents neither agreed nor disagreed that they receive adequate support from the University as a ‘BAME’ student.
• Almost half agreed that they feel part of the University, meanwhile 35% agreed that they feel integrated in the LUU community. It’s clear that more work needs to be done here.
• Popular ideas to improve support included more diversity education for white students, better representation and support for ‘BAME’ students, events and opportunities, and better accommodation and celebration of diversity.

The University should adopt & implement a strategy to close the BAME awarding gaps.

The University should implement a body dedicated to research into decolonisation.

Have you seen the huge mural of former LUU Exec, activist and academic Melz by the LUU South Entrance? Co-op created this hand-painted mural to celebrate inspirational Black figures and prompt more positive discussions around diversity and inclusion.