The death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis on 25 May 2020, described as “a 21st Century lynching” by historian David Olusoga, sparked a wave of protests across the United States, and very shortly after right across the world, including here in the United Kingdom.
The Black Lives Matter movement, originating in the African-American community as a campaign against violence and systemic racism has seen it take on a number of broader causes, including those that concern the environment, healthcare, education, immigration, intersectionality, and recent calls for the removal of statues of figures with questionable historical ties. British society is not exempt from these calls for change; indeed much of the wealth and prosperity of this nation has been built on the back of colonialism and that of slavery.
We hear from three UCL students and touch upon areas including what Blackness means to them, what’s caused the movement to hit critical mass, the implications it has for the United Kingdom and what this might mean for education spaces. This is a very frank and honest conversation, but one that needs to be had.
*Recorded on Thursday 11 June 2020
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Content referenced in the podcast
- Angela Davis - @Channel4News on Twitter
- EastEnders episode, 17 March 2020 - BBC
- Dave - Black, performed live at the 2020 Brit Awards
- John Boyega speech at the Black Lives Matter protest in London, 3 June 2020 - London Evening Standard
- Professor Stuart Hall, Desert Island Discs, 18 Feb 2020 - BBC Radio 4
- Reni Eddo-Lodge: Why I’m no longer talking to people about race - The Guardian
- Professor Paul Gilroy: The Black Atlantic - Harvard University Press
- Mena Fombo: No. You cannot touch my hair! - TEDxBristol
- Bell Hooks Institute
- Frantz Fanon - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Huey P. Newton
- Rokhaya Diallo on Twitter
Links
- The IOE's Black Lives Matter statement
- UCL's message of support
- Dr Humera Iqbal's research profile
- Thomas Coram Research Unit
- Department of Social Science
- More IOE Podcasts
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