Learning to heal - racism

Season 2, Episode 2,   Oct 22, 2021, 10:00 AM

To mark and honour Black History Month Gillian has an honest, inspiring and challenging conversation with Rosemarie Davidson-Gotobed, the founder and director of the Sam Sharp lectures and a diversity and inclusion consultant. In this lengthy and indepth conversation they cover many topics, including:

  • Rosemarie's experience of lockdown and how music helped.
  • Walking away and returning to the work of diversity and inclusion in the church.
  • The dashed hopes after the Faith in the City report.
  • The recent BBC panorama documentary on the church and racism.
  • The Lament to Action report of the Church of England.
  • The intersection of gender and racism in the church. 
  • Whiteness as the lens through which everything is seen.
  • The need for education, deconstruction and sharing stories of heritage.
  • Deconstruction illustrated by a house metaphor.
  • The need to include healing as part of the racism conversation.
  • The impact of the pandemic on UKME communities.
  • The impact of intergenerational trauma on physical health.
  • Hesitancy within UKME communities to engage in mental health issues.
  • The helpful, healing song lyrics of 'I need you to survive.' Hezekiah Walker.
  • What we need to do in practice: Educate, empower yourself to ask questions and don't be afraid to make mistakes.

Links/ references:
Faith in the City: A Call for Action by Church and Nation
From Lament to Action: The report of the Archbishops' Anti-Racism Taskforce
Azariah France-Williams: Ghost Ship, Institutional Racism and the Church of England.
I.O. Smith: An Ebony Cross, being a Black Christian in Britain today.
The Sewell Report
Yo-Yo Ma
Hezekiah Walker: I need you to survive.
BBC Panorama documentary: Is the Church Racist?

Further Listening: Listen again to our podcast with Azariah France-Williams at the launch of his book, Ghost Ship.

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