TUC North West 25 Ambassador Programme

This year we are celebrating the 25^th anniversary of Show Racism the Red Card. Here in the North West we’ve been proud to work with them over many of those years, and in 2018 I was proud to join their “Hall of Fame”.

Over the past two decades, trade unions have launched a range of initiatives to boost anti-racism in the workplace. Trade unions have a crucial role to play in the struggle for race equality and the TUC has recently established a national anti-racism taskforce to map out actions we can take to tackle racial injustices.

The course itself will be a seven-week programme, covering a wide variety of topics from consequences and causes of racism to terminology and the role of the media. We will explore the history of racial injustice, oppression and stereotyping and what racism looks like in the world today. We will deconstruct the behaviours and micro-aggressions that lead to racism and the nuanced way that racism is expressed.

The programme will have guest speakers exploring the growth of Islamophobia, especially in the context of growing anti-immigration rhetoric and a look at narratives around asylum seekers/refugees and immigrants. We will also be joined by a guest speaker looking at Gypsy Roma Traveller communities – dispelling myths around culture as well as the thinking about the prejudices the community faces. We will be providing a workshop also on Antisemitism and the concept of allyship.

The rise of the far-right will also be a subject for discussion, who they are, and what this looks like in the UK, alongside some historical context. Long have working people stood against what the far-right represents and we have a proud history in the North West of standing up against their rhetoric.

Trade unions are effective in the workplace and it is important our anti-racism work begins there. A recent TUC report revealed that BME workers are more likely to report being abused work, have been unfairly overlooked for a payrise or promotion at work, have been unfairly turned down for jobs and more likely to be kept on insecure contracts.

There is strong commitment across the trade union movement to put unions at the forefront in the struggle for race equality. Our ambassadors will be given the skills and the confidence to tackle these injustices and themselves share what they have learned. Participants will be able to recognise prejudicial incidents and ensure that they understand the value of responding appropriately to such incidents.

Show Racism the Red Card has for 25 years provided educational workshops, training sessions, multimedia packages, and a whole host of other resources, all with the purpose of tackling racism in society. Established in January 1996, the organisation utilises the high-profile status of football and football players to publicise its message. Across Britain, Show Racism the Red Card delivers training to more than 50,000 individuals per year. This new initiative also coincides with the opening of their new North West regional office. Together, working in partnership, we can continue to build on our anti-racism work, reach as many workplaces as possible in the region, keep anti-racism at the top of the agenda and show racism the red card.

To register your interest in the programme and becoming one of our ant-racism ambassadors. Please email cpullinger@tuc.org.uk and express your interest. You will then be sent an application form to complete. For successful applicants, the programme will start on Wednesday 08 September 2021. The full course breakdown is below:

Lynn Collins, Regional Secretary

Please watch this video from Show Racism the Red Card’s Honorary President, Shaka Hislop.