#SRtRCSpotlight: North West launch Leaders of Now: Anti-Racist Captains
Show Racism the Red Card’s North West team recently launched an exciting new project ‘Leaders of Now: Anti-Racist Captains’ with Kirklees, West Yorkshire. This work has kindly been funded by The Mayors Safer Communities Fund and involves 5 lucky schools from across the Huddersfield area.
Each school is receiving a day of anti-racism workshops, followed by a small group of students being empowered to become Anti-Racism Captains; we will work with this group to develop their overall anti-racism knowledge, confidence to recognise and respond to racism and become active allies and leaders of anti-racism in their school. These young people will also be working on creating a small exhibition piece which will be presented at a celebration event in the summer term.
This week, Hannah, one of our fantastic Educators, visited Slaithwaite C of E Junior and Infant school in Huddersfield. The project began with activities focused on helping the children understand what racism is and where it stems from: stereotypes. Through a variety of engaging exercises, the children were encouraged to confront their own stereotypes, explore their origins, and critically examine why they held them. The children demonstrated a clear understanding of the books, news stories, and historical events that have contributed to the formation of these stereotypes.
They then had the opportunity to explore different solutions for varying racist incidents, understanding the importance of intervening and educating those who are unaware of the impact of racism. It was a day filled with enthusiasm and passion, as the children expressed their dedication to becoming strong advocates for anti-racism.
Chris Hudson, Deputy Head and Class Teacher for Y5&6 said:
“The Children and staff were hugely impressed by the sessions. It supported the students in reflecting on stereotypes and understanding how impressions are formed. Show Racism the Red Card supported the children in what we do to promote and create a supportive and inclusive society.”
The team are looking forward to our future visits across the region and cannot wait to see how this amazing group of young people develop over the following months!