BARAC UK Ten Year anniversary zoom event and launch of the film Is Britain Racist, 21st of June

BARAC UK turns ten years old next week. We cannot believe that ten years has passed either. We started as a campaign against the forthcoming disproportionate impact of austerity on black workers, service users and communities in June 2010 and never anticipated that we would still be here ten years later. Hand in Hand with austerity came deepening racism and injustice which has continued to this very day. In the ten years since we were formed we have campaigned against institutional racism, every day racism, racism and injustice at work, in the labour market,  in education, in wider society, in the arts and culture sector, in policing and public institutions, we have co-founded several other groups including Movement Against Xenophobia,  Elbow Out Ebola,  BME Lawyers 4 Grenfell, BAME Lawyers for Justice and we have campaigned against deaths at the hands of the state and human rights abuses globally.  We have campaigned for refugee and migrant rights and for seven years coordinated regular humanitarian aid  and solidarity work, fundraising and raising thousands of pounds and conducting regular aid missions to people who are displaced in France. . Our work has been recognised nationally and internationally and we have worked with our sisters and brothers for global justice.  We have organised numerous marches, protests, lobbies of parliament,  direct actions. Our campaigns have included Windrush Day of Action, MLK50 Equality In Our Lifetime, I am an Immigrant Campaign, Dear White People film campaign, ending with our national chair co-hosting  a Leicester Square premier film screening, we have been joined in the UK and supported by the Reverend Jesse Jackson and Reverend Al Sharpton, we forced the British Olympics Association to do a U-turn and much more. During the past few years we have had a big focus on  Windrush justice and campaigning against the 'hostile environment' more widely.

BARAC UK was co-founded by Zita Holbourne and Lee Jasper who were the co-chairs until Lee stepped down and Zita took up the role of National Chair. 

We want to thank all of the people that kept us going and supported and stood with us,  especially the activists who led the local BARAC structures in different cities, a big shout out goes to Colette Williams and Maurice Shaw   - Manchester BARAC co-chairs,  Maxie Hayles - Birmingham BARAC Chair, Pauline North, Bristol BARAC Chair, Graham Campbell, Scotland BARAC Chair and all the other convenors, activists and members of BARAC.

We thank all those partner orgs and individuals  we have  worked with, those who affiliated with us and worked with us including trade unions with a special thank you to the Public and Commercial Services Union who have supported our journey from the very start and continue to do so.

We thank everyone who has supported our campaigns over the years, attended events and demos, answered our call for action to challenge racism, injustice and cuts and to support our humanitarian aid work.  We see you and appreciate you. 

Sunday 21st June is the 10 year anniversary of BARAC UK & the eve of National Windrush Day . We will be holding a zoom event from 3 to 4.30pm launching the full length documentary Is Britain Racist made by film maker Jean-Marc Aka-Kadjo over a 2 year period charting the Windrush Scandal and BARAC and others campaigning opposing it, on the eve of Windrush Day we want to highlight the ongoing injustice and will be showing segments of the film plus holding a discussion on Windrush, Coronavirus impacts on black communities and Black Lives Matter with co founder and National Chair of BARAC UK , Zita Holbourne  plus National Women's Officer Donna Guthrie and International Officer Hector Wesley with q&a & discussion.  

Jean - Marc Aka-Kadjo says:

This documentary will take you on a journey that shows the hopes, dreams and aspirations of those who came to Britain during the Windrush era from various countries within the Commonwealth. The film is candid and exposes and reveals truth. Individual interviews, news feeds and archive footage have been utilised to show how the lives of individuals from the Windrush era, and the lives of their loved ones, have been affected by the recent changes in British law…and what is being done to help them. 

Zita Holbourne, Chair of BARAC UK says:

We have fought for justice, equality, rights and freedom for many years, way before BARAC UK was formed and will continue to do so. The deepening racism  and injustice our communities face globally demonstrate that our organisation and many others like it are still needed  and will be needed for some time. The impacts of coronavirus on black communities are huge - with black people over 4 times more likely to die, this has a direct link to discrimination and poverty and globally people, predominantly young have take to the streets over the past fortnight crying out that black lives matter, because George Floyd was murdered by police in the USA but also because many more have died because of racism in the USA, in the UK and around the world, because institutional racism and every day racism destroys lives, because we are still far from having race equality. We have supported and campaigned for decolonisation of our towns and cities and universities and curriculums for many years and we are glad that there is now a serious discussion about the glorification of historic statues  of people who enslaved and murdered our ancestors and who endorsed and allowed racism to thrive and who were complicit in enslavement and colonialism.  In 2017 we published our 2025 vision for race equality and it is interesting to see that some institutions and businesses now are only just starting to consider their own part in allowing institutional racism to continue in their own organisations - for those organisations to say black lives matter is all very well but actions speak louder than words.

 You are invited to a Zoom meeting.

When: Jun 21, 2020 15:00 London

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0pd-yurDgrHd1php1RBAFKCbzLjm73priw

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. from baracwomens@gmail.com.

Please see attached flyer.

There is also a facebook link below to share on social media.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1722934767871969/ 

A selection of photos from recent years follows: 

JOINT BARAC & TNBFC PRESS RELEASE; Victory in the Dear White People Campaign

JOINT BARAC & TNBFC PRESS RELEASE; Victory in the Dear White People Campaign            Thursday 9^th July 2015 

On Wednesday 8^th of July the BFI confirmed that they will be granting lottery funding for the wider distribution of the film Dear White People in UK cinemas. This decision follows a month long joint campaign by Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) UK and The New Black Film Collective to challenge the institutional racism in the UK film industry at large.

Campaign actions included a screening of Dear White People in the Houses of Parliament, hosted by John McDonnell MP with a post film discussion on the issue of institutional racism in the film industry and a Change.org petition signed by over 1000 people including politicians, trade union and community leaders and celebrities.

The initial refusal of the BFI to grant lottery funding for the distribution of the film in cinemas without fully exploring all avenues for release and the refusal of major art house cinema chains to screen it could have led to the film going straight to DVD in the UK despite it being a Box Office success in the USA and an award winning film.

BARAC UK & TNBFC are pleased that the BFI, be it belatedly, agreed to work in partnership with TNBFC to find a solution for Dear White People and going forward to discuss measures to improve distribution and audience development for black film in the future.

National Co-Chair of BARAC UK Zita Holbourne said;

‘I am happy that BARAC was able to work jointly with TNBFC to achieve this victory, but the institutional racism that exists in the arts and culture sector including the film industry must be challenged going forward.  Black and migrant communities have made a tremendous contribution to the arts in the UK and the disproportionate impact of austerity means that the racism in the sector is amplified.  Going forward the BFI must ensure that their decision making bodies reflect the communities they are supposed to serve, that they consider the equality impact of their actions and equality proof their policies and processes.  It is simply unacceptable in 2015 that the only films featuring black characters or about our story on the big screen see us whipped, chained or ridiculed or that the token black character in the film is the first to die.’

Director of TNBFC, Priscilla Igwe said;

'I am delighted that through the intervention of Ben Roberts, Director of Film at the BFI, a way has been found to widen the release of Dear White People, a film that could not be more relevant in light of recent events and it bodes well for the vital investment required for contemporary Black cinema to be received in this country. We would like to thank BARAC and the support of British audiences for recognising that it is time for a change and getting behind this film.'

The campaign was always about more than just Dear White People and about the repeated rejection of films written, directed and produced by black people and about black people.  Our stories just like all stories deserve to be told, it is only by sharing our experiences that we break down barriers and as we experiencing deepening racism, film is a powerful medium for initiating debate about the issues of race and racism. It is not enough for institutions to say they are for race equality, they must put this into practice and demonstrate a real commitment to ensure that bias conscious or unconscious plays no part in their decision making, that  so called ‘black films’ are not pigeon holed or ghettoised and that they reach wider audiences.  Therefore we see this victory not as the end of a campaign but the start.

The Dear White People Premiere and After Party took place on Wednesday 8^th July at the Prince Charles Cinema and Ruby Blue in Leicester Square, London respectively.  Dear White People is on general theatrical release from 10^th of July

Ends

Contact:

Zita Holbourne, BARAC UK    Tel. 07711 861660   Email barac.info@gmail.com

Priscilla Igwe, TNBFC    Tel. 07860613246   Email   info@tnbfc.co.uk

BARAC UK is a national campaign with regional structures against racism and injustice and the disproportionate impact of cuts on black workers, service users and communities and deprived communities.

TNBFC is network of film exhibitors, educators and programmers spread across the regions in the UK. As part of their range of services, they host screenings that matter to the local community featuring international and domestic films of black representation and are one of only two black film distributors in the UK.

Press Release: Dear White People

PRESS RELEASE

10^th June 2015

Black Activists Rising Against Cuts (BARAC) UK & The New Black Film Collective

Screen ‘Dear White People’ in UK cinemas

‘Dear White People' is an award winning USA produced satirical comedy-drama film set on a University campus, directed and written by Justin Simien. The film won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Talent at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Justin Simien has been named in Variety magazine's 2013 "10 Directors to Watch" list.

Black Activists Rising Against Cuts and The New Black Film Collective have launched a campaign to get the film screened in cinemas.

The film is due for general theatrical release in the UK from July 10th but so far very few cinemas have agreed to screen the film with no cinemas agreeing to standard full 7 day run.

The BFI has refused lottery funding to the New Black Film Collective (one of only two black film distribution companies in the UK), which would have supported the distribution of the film with no justifiable reasons given and a major independent art-house cinema chain has turned it down even though they stated that they like the film.

The response to 'Dear White People' by the UK film industry is part of a wider problem of institutional racism in the industry, whereby films featuring black characters, exploring race and identity and / or made by black producers / directors  are repeatedly rejected for theatrical release, meaning that they go straight to DVD  / Blue Ray release unless they portray black people in negative stereotypical roles or there is a tokenistic response of one-off screenings linked to cultural events such as Black History Month with very limited or no screenings outside of London.

'Dear White People' and other intelligent films exploring the issues of race, racism, identity and intersectionality should be available for mainstream and diverse audiences to view and enjoy and are important in creating dialogue about the issues and in tackling racism.  Set on a USA university campus, the film reflects the experiences of black students in universities here in the UK:   a study carried out by the National Union of Students found that one in six black students in UK universities had experienced racism in their institution, a third felt their educational environment left them unable to bring their minority perspective to lectures and tutorials, and 7% openly labelled their learning environment as "racist".

Charmaine Simpson, Chair of The New Black Film Collective said:

 ‘We refuse to become Oliver Twist begging ‘please sir can we have some more’ but rather emulate Lenny Henry and Greg Dyke in calling out the bastions of British culture for being ‘hideously white’.  We must not let them allow diversity to be a talking shop or a box to tick – instead put their lottery money where their mouth is instead of hiding behind fake excuses that are used to preserve the status quo. There has to be a spotlight put on white privilege and black disadvantage – this sense of entitlement and old boys network must be brought crashing down. Dear White People is addressed to you – Britain, so let this be a love letter for change’.

Zita Holbourne, Co-Chair of BARAC UK said:

‘Institutional racism in the film and wider arts & culture industries must be challenged, austerity and cuts are impacted disproportionately on young black people wishing to enter the industry as well as access for black communities. It is simply unacceptable to pigeonhole a film as suitable only for black audiences because it is directed by a black man and addresses the issues of identity and race and then reject it on that basis.  The film is important in exploring issues of racism which is a responsibility of all, not just those on the receiving end but ultimately the film is a piece of art and art deserves to be enjoyed by everyone’.

A petition started four days ago on change.org has already gained hundreds of signatures: https://www.change.org/p/uk-cinemas-bfi-screen-dear-white-people-in-cinemas-across-the-uk and a screening of the film is due to take place in Parliament together with a discussion on the issue of institutional racism in the industry as part of the campaign.

Supporters are encouraged to organise their own screenings and to book tickets to the UK Premiere taking place at Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square in July.

www.ourscreen.com/film/Dear-White-People

www.princecharlescinema.com/events/events.php?seasonanchor=dearwhitepeople

Ends

Contact:

Email  barac.info@gmail.com or

Tel. 07860613246

Twitter: @tnbfc     @baracuk

#DearWhitePeopleUK

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/dearwhitepeopleuk

Web: www.blackactivistsrisingagainstcuts.blogspot.com

           http://www.tnbfc.co.uk/

 Reviews & Synopsis

Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a rating of 92% saying;

'Dear White People adds a welcome new voice to cinema's oft-neglected discussion of race, tackling its timely themes with intelligence, honesty, and gratifyingly sharp wit.'

The New York Times said of it;

'Everyone should see this movie, and everyone will see it a little differently. Maybe you will think it goes too far, or not far enough. Since I happen to belong to the group to which it is explicitly addressed, a direct response seems warranted. Dear “Dear White People”: Got your message. Keep in touch.'

Variety said:

'“Dear White People” nonetheless provokes admiration for having bothered to ask some of the hard questions without pretending to know any of the answers. It also works as a fine showcase for its actors: Fleshing out characters that could have been little more than one-note mouthpieces, Williams, Thompson, Parris and Bell all make strong, distinctive impressions, with Thompson perhaps the standout as the film’s sharpest and most enigmatic figure.'

We call on cinema chains across the UK to screen 'Dear White People' when it is released in July and to consider screening it for 7 day runs or more and for the BFI to reverse its decision not to provide lottery funding for the distribution of the film. It is important that they are held to account on their commitment and promises around diversity.

Film Synopsis:

Sam White is a mixed race film production major at Winchester University, a prestigious and predominantly white school. With her sharp tongued and witty radio show Dear White People and her self-published book, Ebony and Ivy, Sam causes a stir among the administration and student body alike, criticising white people and the racist transgressions at Winchester.

When Sam wins the election for head of house of Armstrong/Parker, the all black house on campus, tensions rise. In winning the election, she beats her ex-boyfriend Troy Fairbanks, the son of the school's dean. Troy harbours dreams of being a comedic writer rather than a lawyer, but his father prefers that he not give white people a chance to profile him, and will accept nothing less than his best. Coco has an issue with Sam because the reality TV producer she is trying to win over would rather do a show on the witty light-skinned black girl than her. Lionel Higgins, a black gay student, gets a chance at finally finding his place at Winchester by being recruited by the school's most prestigious student paper to write a piece on Sam and the black experience at Winchester. When Kurt, a white student and son of the school's president, and his club come up with a blackface theme for their annual party in response to Sam's outspoken show, black students appear at the party, and a confrontation ensues, leading to a brawl.

Watch the UK Trailer of Dear White People

Dear White People - Give Us Your Ears; Guest Blog by Charmaine Simpson of The New Black Film Collective

Introduction by Zita Holbourne, Co-Chair of BARAC UK 

BARAC together with the New Black Film Collective (TNBFC) have launched a new petition, calling on the UK film industry to support the screening of 'Dear White People' when it goes on general release in July.

Whether you love or loathe the film , for us at BARAC UK we are participating in this campaign as a matter of principle. Why shouldn't a film that tackles race and racism, that is written and directed by a black man, be screened in UK cinemas? Why should we only get to see films  at our cinemas where black characters are ridiculed, beaten or are the first to die? Furthermore it's a film for diverse audiences and because it explores the issues of racism experienced by black people should not be pigeonholed as a 'black film'. The reaction to Dear White People by the BFI and cinema chains is indicative of the wider racism we encounter throughout the arts  and wider society and must be challenged.  If not us then who? If not now then when? 

‘Dear White People – Give Us Your Ears!’

By

Charmaine Simpson

Chair

The New Black Film Collective

Dear White People is not just the title of the film I am desperately trying to distribute in this country but also a case of ‘life imitating art’ as a Black person who is beseeching you not to allow another injustice to prevail where we, as a race, have been once again treated like second-class citizens. Like a fairytale, I shall start from the beginning but it is a shame that unlike a nightmare, we can’t wake up at the end knowing that this is all a dream.

Dear White People is a ground-breaking, Sundance awarding-winning debut feature from Justin Simien that a hit in the US but for some curious reason, was not picked up for theatrical distribution in the UK. Now, even though this is the first of many crimes against art that has been thrown at this title, it was a golden opportunity for The New Black Film Collective – a network of film programmers, educators and exhibitors of Black representation on screen, to finally do what we say on our ‘tin’ and that is to be a champion of cinema from the African Diaspora. It is only by literally bringing these stories to the mainstream that the dominant culture learns not to be ‘afraid of the dark’. That white people can go against the conditioning by the elite that enforces the ‘system of disadvantage based on race’ as quoted in the film by the leading lady, Sam - and realise that Black people are human too with complex, fully rounded characters instead of wanting to shoot us unarmed because you are scared of what is ‘under the hood’.

The feature is a satire based on sweeping stereotypes that challenges racial discrimination and other areas of inequality where nobody is perfect, where the ‘dirty laundry’ of the Black community is also aired and realities of homophobia, class, mixed relationships and segregation are also a collective slap in our faces. Therefore, it is paramount that we all fight for this film to screened far and wide and say Dear BFI this is not right. Like the BBC and BAFTA, you are institutions that are supposed to serve all members of society and denying this film lottery funding for its release because you think there is not enough demand from audiences, or there is not the appetite from cinemas to take it, are ‘little white lies’ to stop people from being enlightened.

We refuse to become Oliver Twist begging ‘please sir can we have some more’ but rather emulate Lenny Henry and Greg Dyke in calling out the bastions of British culture for being ‘hideously white’.  We must not let them allow diversity to be a talking shop or a box to tick – instead put their lottery money where their mouth is instead of hiding behind fake excuses that are used to preserve the status quo. We may not win the appeal to overturn your decision but if making a compliant means that you think twice about rejecting the next Black distributor that knocks on your door then it is worth it. If it means having a separate diversity team monitor the application process objectively for Black applicants, then it is worth it. If it means that we have to dig into our own pockets to fund the release of this film ourselves so it is not ‘ghettoised’, then we are certainly worth it - because it will lead to our empowerment and independence to bring our films to market and build our cinematic ‘underground railroad’.

However, it is not fair that once again we have to work that much more harder, sacrifice that much more when the BFI are continually funding flops distributed by the same white, middle-class companies that don’t even need the money. BFI cites Nymphomaniac distributed by Curzon as a successful release that they have funded yet it has it own chain of cinemas and video on demand platform. All we asked was for £30k to match fund a total spend of £60K on print & advertising. Instead they said that because we have a shortened window between the release of the film on screen and then on DVD, it is a challenge too difficult to overcome when there is traditionally a 16 week gap and also feel that they are really underwriting our campaign.  Nonetheless, Nymphomaniac, a dressed up pornographic movie by Lars Von Trier, was released the same day in the cinema and online with an 18 certificate. The BFI gave the distributor £50k of its £200K budget, which is equivalent to David Cameron claiming benefits after losing his job as prime minster. (We are still dreaming, remember?)

There has to be a spotlight put on white privilege and black disadvantage – this sense of entitlement and old boys network must be brought crashing down. We live in a global village and we are stronger for respecting difference and embracing our commonality. The shining light in all this are the independent cinemas who have taken us on and are willing to take the risk because they love the film as a piece of art and a mark of activism. Prince Charles Cinema is giving us a fighting chance by hosting our premiere, and if it does well, they will screen it over the all-important opening weekend of July 10^th. Then it is our turn to vote with our feet and make a difference by turning out in numbers and buying a ticket which will mean more cinemas will open their doors to us - then it stops being about the colour of our skin and starts being about the colour of our money.

Let’s Do the Right Thing with Dear White People because although we may not have the seats in parliament that we wanted in the past election, we can still take our seats in theatres and make our voices count! Let us not predict a riot this time but a revolution of ideas, reform and policy where fairness and good practice can be guaranteed under the watchful eye of a diversity watchdog which is key as we know we are probably only one of two Black distribution companies in this country and the first to be led by Black women. Dear White People is addressed to you – Britain, so let this be a love letter for change.

#DearWhitePeopleUK

Website - www.facebook.com/dearwhitepeopleuk

To host your own screening - https://www.ourscreen.com/film/Dear-White-People

Book tickets to Dear White People Premiere  -http://www.princecharlescinema.com/events/events.php?seasonanchor=dearwhitepeople

 SIGN THE PETITION HERE