ROTA Parliamentary Report: Spring 2022
6 new laws and how they will impact our communities
ROTA’s Statement on the Government’s Inclusive Britain Action Plan
The Government recently published Inclusive Britain, a response to the report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED), which was launched as a result of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. The report of the CRED was criticised for failing to acknowledge systemic racism in the UK, and although Inclusive Britain now accepts…
Where does the persecution of slang come from and why does it continue?
Hood’, ‘ghetto’, ‘unprofessional’ are just a few of the phrases that have been used to describe the vernacular commonly used by young people from inner-city areas. In 2021, a South London school came under criticism for trying to ban slang words such as ‘bare’ and ‘innit’ from being used in school. The decision made to…
Reform of the Mental Health Act must not be a missed opportunity, mental health and race experts demand
Reform of the Mental Health Act should see an end to structural racism within mental health services but the Government plans are found wanting. On March 9th an on-line conference organised by Mind and Race on the Agenda and sponsored by Garden Court Chambers explored the urgent need for Mental Health Act reform and how…
Its up to men to stop violence against women
Its up to men to stop violence against women, writes Callum Ferguson.
Statement on Ukraine Situation
As organisations working with marginalised communities in the UK, we express our deep concern at the escalating conflict in Ukraine, which will result in catastrophic loss of life, suffering, and subsequently lead to many fleeing the country as refugees. We view this as an opportunity for Britain to demonstrate that it is a welcoming nation,…
Term “BAME” replaced with “GLOBAL MAJORITY”
As an organisation ROTA has made the decision to refrain from using the term ‘BAME’ to identify anyone that is subject to racialisation. We recognise that the term has previously been used in our publications however; we have since reviewed this and acknowledge that it is non specific, lacks nuance, and generalises anyone that deviates…
The Continued Importance of Holocaust Memorial Day
On January 27th, coinciding with the date of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in 1945, Holocaust Memorial Day (which started in 2001) provides an annual opportunity to not only commemorate the Holocaust, but also to renew our opposition to all forms of racism. Commemorating the Holocaust inevitably brings up many issues, such as…
Education News
ROTA is piloting a Higher Education research project. Although statistics show an upward trend in the numbers of UK-domiciled students from Global Majority and Gipsy, Roma and Traveller communities attending university, there is a higher withdrawal rate among these groups of students. ROTA's project explores reasons why students choose to withdraw, defer or change course. In…
Mental health support and why we’re not getting all the help we should
If we can take one positive from this past year, it’s the renewed interest placed on mental wellbeing. From new mental health apps gaining traction, to elite sportswomen standing up for their own wellbeing, the importance placed on mental health is at an all-time high. That said, there has also been worrying research highlighting failings…
