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REPORT OF THE 2012 TRADES UNION CONGRESS BLACK WORKERS’ CONFERENCE

27-29 APRIL 2012, CONGRESS HOUSE, LONDON

MEMBERS OF THE NUT DELEGATION

Delegates

Samidha Garg (Delegation Leader), Roger King, Betty Joseph, Elena Noel-Beswick, Pamela Daley, Leonora Smith, Ivy Scott, Paramjeet Singh Bhogal, JennyChristopher, KauserJan, Beverley Sutherland, Lindy Bannis, Trevor Owers, Sharon Anderson, LaurenceWong

Visitors:

Marilyn Harrop, Lindsey McDowell

REPORT OF THE NUT DELEGATION

MOTION 9: The Prevent Strategy and Challenging Islamophobia

Lawrence Wong moved the Union’s motion. He described the Prevent Strategy as an example of institutional racism and referred to the speech given in Munich in February 2011 by David Cameron attacking multiculturalism. He noted how the programme was originally concerned with fighting terrorism and had been subverted so that it was now concerned with ‘extremism’. He described the disproportionate focus on Islam with little mention of the far right. He concluded that Prevent is about preventing the recognition of Muslim heritage and preventing BME groups achieving equality.

The motion was seconded by UCU and carried unanimously.

OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BY THE DELEGATION

Members of the delegation spoke during the debate on the following motions:

  • Lawrence Wong spoke on Motion 3 ‘Cuts - Measuring the Impact’ moved by UNISON.
  • Betty Joseph spoke on Motion 4 ‘Apprenticeship Schemes’ moved by Prospect.
  • Lawrence Wong spoke on Motion 5 ‘The Global Impact of the Recession’ moved by PCS.
  • Paramjeet Singh Bhogal spoke on Motion 7 ‘Demonisation of Immigrants’ moved by Community.
  • Sandra Mitchell spoke on Motion 16 ‘The Experience of Black Staff in Higher, Further and Community Education’ moved by UCU.
  • Pam Daley spoke on Motion 17 ‘Standing Up for Standards’ moved by the NASUWT.
  • Kauser Jan spoke on Motion 18 ‘Black Workers, Racism and Bullying’ moved by USDAW.
  • Leonora Smith spoke on Motion 19 ‘Career Progression for Black Workers’ moved by UNITE.

CONFERENCE CHAIR

Eleanor Smith, president of UNISON, chaired the conference. She was a theatre nurse from Birmingham and was the first black woman to be elected president of that union.

SPEAKERS

BRENDAN BARBER – GENERAL SECRETARY, TUC

Brendan Barber thanked conference for the invitation to speak and noted that this year was his last year as he had announced his retirement. He said that the fight for equality had never been more important given the downturn of the global economy and the rise of the far right across Europe. He recognised that progress had been made, in that society was more equal with greater legal equality.

He referred to the rise in popularity of the far right in Europe, noting that in France one in five votes cast in the first round of the national elections were for the Front National and that eight countries had far right representatives in the European Parliament. He also described the horror of the massacre of “young idealists who cared for a fair society” in Norway in the summer of 2011, saying that “we must honour them by continuing their fight”. He urged trade unionists to join with organisations like Hope Not Hate and Unite Against Fascism to oppose the politics of hate in the local elections and noted that, although the BNP were in decline, society was still tarnished by racism.

He said that the public sector cuts, with the loss of over 700,000 jobs, have had a disproportionate effect on BME women. He noted that unemployment amongst young black people was rising at twice the rate of that for young white people. He reported that more than half the young black men who wanted to work couldn’t find a job and described this situation as a “scandal”. He said that these issues were a “ticking time bomb for our society” and that the government needed to get serious about creating employment.

He stated that the restoration of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) and a back to work fund would be vital to achieve economic recovery and that there should be a more inclusive approach to apprenticeships as too many young black people are missing out.

He said that the trade union movement needed to “up our game” and that the battle for a ‘colour blind’ Britain was far from won. He described how he was proud to be in the fight for race equality in the workplace and was honoured that Doreen Lawrence was addressing the conference. He noted that two men had been imprisoned for Stephen’s murder, representing a partial victory, but told Mrs Lawrence that “none of us will rest until everyone responsible has been convicted”. He drew delegates’ attention to the work of the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust (SLCT) and urged them to support the financial appeal.

The conference Chair thanked Brendan Barber for his lifetime commitment to the fight for equality and social justice.

DOREEN LAWRENCE OBE

Doreen Lawrence reminded conference that it was 19 years since she lost her eldest child. She said that, while there was no greater pain than that, her pain didn’t end there as she had to suffer the ongoing injustice that surrounded the case.

She noted that Stephen’s death had brought many changes, including the ‘double jeopardy’ legislation that enabled the conviction of Gary Dobson. She stated that the Inquiry in 1998 had given an insight into the racism that plagues society and that she was determined to achieve justice for Stephen through change.

Mrs Lawrence described the work of the SLCT as not just a legacy but a chance to realise dreams, giving young people the opportunity to overcome the barriers that prevented them from achieving a career in urban design and related fields. She explained her investment in all the students and announced that so far eight “Stephens” have qualified in architecture. She said that the SLCT had delivered many benefits for many people and asked that delegates and their unions support the financial appeal.

CHUKA UMUNNA MP – SHADOW SECRETARY OF STATE FOR BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY

Chuka Umunna paid tribute to both Brendan Barber and Doreen Lawrence, saying that without Doreen there would have been no Inquiry and no official recognition of institutional racism. He stated that he had recently been to Auschwitz and that we should never be complacent in the fight against prejudice and hatred or the world would end up there again.

He reflected on how much had changed in the last two decades and described the achievements, including improved relations with the police and an increased number of black people in the legal profession. He was the first person of African heritage to be a Shadow Secretary of State and he felt that he had achieved this on the shoulders of people in the conference hall and people like “Bernie, Diane and Keith”. He said that it was a disgrace that young black men were thirty times more likely to be stopped and searched and called for an investigation into the police’s use of these powers. He noted that if there were proportionate representation then there would be double the number of black MPs and far fewer black children would be excluded from school. He also noted the negative and stereotyped depiction of black people in the media.

Chuka described the unemployment rate of 47.4% amongst black 16 to 24 year olds as “shocking” and asked why the Government was cutting investment in the next generation; trebling tuition fees, cutting Education Maintenance Allowance and scaling back the Building Schools for the Future programme. He said that the Coalition Government was “heartless and hopeless” and told delegates that the Labour Party was working hard to win back the support of the people.

During the question and answer session that followed Chuka Umunna’s speech, NUT delegate Leonora Smith asked what the Labour Party was doing to help people. In response, Chuka explained that he felt society was made up of mutually dependent human beings, talked about the achievements of the last Labour Government and appealed to activists to join the Labour Party.

LEE JASPER – BLACK ACTIVISTS RISING AGAINST THE CUTS (BARAC)

Lee Jasper paid tribute to the sacrifice made by forefathers from Asia, Africa and the Caribbean in their fight for freedom and social justice. He said that black history had defined the struggle for human rights and now was the time to reignite the fight as never before. He described the Government’s cuts as an “ideological attack on the working class, black people and vulnerable groups”. He stated that the national debt crisis could be paid by full tax collection on the rich and on business and called for an end to the Trident nuclear programme. He felt that, although 47% of BME young people were recorded as unemployed, in reality the figure would be higher as many did not claim benefits. He also referred to the disproportionate impact of the cuts on women.

He noted that there had been an increase in racism over the last three years and said that violent racists (not just Anders Breivik in Norway) had been committing “racial terrorism” across Europe. He noted the continuing presence of the English Defence League and said that racism must be challenged in order to tackle the far right which will always exist whilst racism is widespread. He stated that there was a need to unite working people with the unemployed and students and called for a general strike.

Lee expressed concern that the Equality and Human Rights Commission was “ineffective” and called on trade unions to challenge the disproportionate impact of the cuts if the EHRC wouldn’t. He also said that there was a need to challenge the racism in the trade union movement.

CLAUDIA MENNE – EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION (ETUC)

Claudia Menne noted that austerity cuts were being imposed across Europe and workers in all countries were being told that there was no alternative. She felt that it was the role of trade unions to put this alternative. That there was evidence that racism and fascist ideology was on the increase across Europe because of the austerity measures and that the equivalents of the Equality and Human Rights Commission across the continent were being cut. She described how European governments, as in the UK, are focussing on encouraging people into voluntary work but this will never be a substitute for sustainable high quality employment. The most important issue across Europe is the rise of the far right and urged anti-fascists to connect and unite at a European level in the run up to the elections in 2014 to ensure that no fascist MEPs were elected.

ORIN LEWIS OBE – AFRICAN-CARIBBEAN LEUKAEMIA TRUST (ACLT)

Orin Lewis described his son Daniel’s battle with leukaemia and how, at the time, there were only 550 black or mixed race people on the UK bone marrow registers. He established the ACLT in June 1996 with Daniel’s mother Beverley De-Gale. Since then the charity has raised the number of potential black/mixed race donors from 550 to approximately 33,000 and many lives have been saved in the process. He urged trade unions to encourage their black members to register as donors and said that further information was available on the charity’s website

MICHAEL ABATAN AND JANET ALDER

Michael talked to conference about the racist murder of his brother Jay in 1999. He described the failure of the police to investigate the murder fully, leading to two men being charged with a lesser crime but then being acquitted. The family believed the crime was investigated differently because the victims were black and the perpetrators were white. Michael described how the brothers’ union, the PCS, had subsequently forced the coroner to hold an inquest which exposed police mishandling of the case. He reported that the CPS and the IPCC told the family that the police were reluctant to spend any more money on the case so there was no chance of justice. He asked delegates to raise awareness of the campaign

Janet told delegates that her brother Christopher died in police custody in 1998. An inquest in 2000 recorded an unlawful killing verdict and the five officers involved were charged with manslaughter and gross negligence, as well as misconduct in public office. Then in June 2002, the judge directed the jury at their trial to return ‘not guilty’ verdicts as the officers involved could not be safely convicted on the evidence. After the trial, a video emerged which showed the police officers laughing and joking as Christopher lay dying (face down) on the floor of the custody suite of the police station. In 2011 the family were horrified to be told that Christopher’s body was in a mortuary in Hull and a woman’s body had been buried at his funeral.

The Christopher Alder Justice Campaign is seeking funds to obtain a professional transcript of the police station video in the hope that the Crown Prosecution Service will then reconsider bringing charges against the officers involved. For further information email

INFORMAL SESSIONS

PANEL DEBATE

A panel debate on ‘Racism in the UK 19 Years On’ took place on the Saturday morning of conference, chaired by Collette Cork-Hurst, National Officer for Equalities, UNITE.

Harmit Athwal - Institute Of Race Relations

Harmit described two kinds of racism, the kind that discriminates and the kind that kills, and noted that the IRR focuses on the latter. She told conference that there had been 96 racist murders since that of Stephen Lawrence, noting that in many cases the family had needed to make a formal complaint to see any kind of justice. She compared the recent rise in Islamophobia to the way that the Irish were treated by the English state and media from the 1970s to the 1990s. She called for ongoing trade union involvement in the fight against racism.

Karen Chouhan – Previously 1990 Trust and now of Equanomics

Karen stated that justice and institutional racism were two pillars of the British establishment and said that both pillars had been rocked by the MacPherson Inquiry. She talked about the link between times of economic boom and bust and the rise and decline of the far right. She noted that society had become focussed on integration, diversity and cohesion instead of fighting racism and that, for things to change, work needed to be done with the white community.

Dr Rob Berkeley – Runnymede Trust

Rob described how discussions about race were being marginalised. The two convictions in the Stephen Laurence case were being used to give the impression that racism has been beaten and that anyone who said otherwise was “dragging us backwards”. Neither the Social Justice Strategy nor the Social Mobility Strategy made any mention of race or race equality. There was a need for equality of outcome as well as equality of opportunity. The public sector cuts were ideological, evidenced by the reduction of funding to race equality charities and the increase in grants to Girl Guiding and similar organisations. He said that there was an urgent need “to expose the truth of racial inequality, to find out what’s really going on and to inspire and engage to end racism in a generation”.

VOTING

TUC RACE RELATIONS COMMITTEE BALLOT ANNOUNCEMENT

Betty Joseph was elected to the TUC Race Relations Committee 2012-2013.

MOTION TO CONGRESS

The Conference voted for Motion 9, Stephen Lawrence’s Legacy,to go forward to the TUC Congress 2012.

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