We have been reviewing the findings of the Government’s Commission on Race & Equality and are clear that its denial of systematic and institutional racism does not reflect the experiences of women and girls who we support.
Organisations within the violence against women and girls’ sector have been highlighting the persistent challenges Black and Minoritised women face, including when seeking to access support when fleeing abuse and in seeking justice, for over 40 years. Making only passing reference to the challenges Black and Minoritised survivors of violence and abuse is not good enough and this report gives little time to recognise or tackle these challenges.
We know that institutional racism exists in our society, the institutions that support survivors and within the charity sector. Each layer of our society should be facing up to this and seeking to change, not actively denying the problem.
Solace has been looking at the steps it can take to become a fully anti-racist organisation and ensuring we take an intersectional feminist approach to our work. This report is only another example of why this internal work is so important for every organisation in society to face up to the full reality of the systematic racism that still exists within the UK.