Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Sadiq Khan slams UK's 'identity kit version of history', backs equality renaissance

By S Neeraj Krishna

SADIQ KHAN has accused the British education system of offering “one-dimensional, identity kit version of history”, while urging people to “go around” it to tackle racism.


The London mayor said in a virtual discussion on Sunday that the anti-racism protests following the custodial death of black American George Floyd served as a wake-up call, stressing that one could no longer be “complacent” about equality issues.

Joined by F-1 champ Lewis Hamilton and stylist Basma Khalifa, Khan said coming across racial slurs in London “wasn’t uncommon” during his growing years in the 1970s and 80s.

“We have made huge progress over the last 30 years, but the reality is that even in 2020 in the most progressive city in the world, if you’re born black, your life chances are far less than any other ethnic group,” he added.

Elaborating on calls to “decolonise” education in Britain, the Labour stalwart said history was learnt more through familial and social interactions, not just classrooms.

He opined that the government was “quite prescriptive about what we learn”, adding that the current school curriculum offered a “one-dimensional, identity kit version of history”.

“I’m not sure if we can wait for the government to understand why it matters — we’ve got to do things ourselves,” Khan said during the Goals House virtual meet.

“We can’t do it formally through the structures of government and the national curriculum, we can use other ways to go around them.”

On the current resurgence of anti-racism movements, Khan stressed it was vital to have the right kind of “allies”.

“Some politicians, frankly speaking, play on people’s fears, the fear of what the Black Lives Matter movement could lead to,” he noted.

“Others should be addressing the fears, and I’m firmly in the camp of addressing people’s fears, addressing their concerns about equality and racism.”

Touching upon British politics, Khan said: “Why are there are too few politicians who look like us?

“The reality is our life experiences are very different from others and you have got to put yourselves in our shoes to understand what we go through.”

The next mayoral election in London, Khan added, should be an “arms race” on who possesses more anti-racism firepower.

“And in the meantime, we can educate [Prime Minister] Boris Johnson and his cabinet as well,” he said.

Khalifa, who has often been vocal about lack of diversity in the fashion industry, said she felt “privileged” that her voice was being “part of the changing the narrative”.

The designer and filmmaker said it was imperative to sustain the “the momentum created by the Black Lives Matter movement”.

“The conversations now are about education – this is what you need to read, what you need to watch, what you need to know, but then there needs to be actionable change,” she added.

“That for me is the most important next step, I love that everyone is learning but I want to see it put into place.”

Hamilton — the sole black Formula One racer in history — also emphasised on “creating allies” on anti-racism front.

The six-time champion said he experienced “a lot of push-back” as he railed against racism in recent times.

Hamilton had created a stir at the Tuscan Grand Prix, which he won, on September 13 as he wore a T-shirt highlighting police brutality.

He had also slammed sports celebrities who chose not to speak out against racism.

“I see those of you who are staying silent, some of you the biggest of stars yet you stay silent in the midst of injustice,” Hamilton had written on Instagram.

“Not a sign from anybody in my industry which of course is a white-dominated sport. I’m one of the only people of colour there yet I stand alone.”

Citing his experience, he told the panellists of the virtual meet: “I’ve spoken to people high up who will say ‘well, all lives matter’, and these are older men in their 60s and 70s.

“I’ve called out people but I’ve also realised that it’s all about creating allies and empowering people, encouraging them to try and educate them and get them to be a part of it.”

Hamilton added that it was “incredible to see what happened in Bristol this year”, referring to the pulling down of slaver Edward Colston’s statue in June.

“None of my friends or people of colour should be walking past statues that represent and are celebrating people who were slave owners,” he said.

More For You

Prithvi

The Prithvi-II missile has a range of around 350 kms and can carry a payload of up to 500 kgs.

DRDO and Doordarshan

India test-fires nuclear-capable missiles; Akash Prime tested in Ladakh

INDIA on Thursday successfully test-fired nuclear-capable short-range ballistic missiles Prithvi-II and Agni-I from the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur, off the Odisha coast.

The launches were carried out by the Strategic Forces Command and demonstrated India's strategic deterrence capability, the defence ministry said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Marco Rubio

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said TRF is a 'front and proxy' of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist group based in Pakistan. (Photo: Getty Images)

US designates Kashmir attack group TRF as terrorist outfit

THE UNITED STATES on Thursday designated The Resistance Front (TRF), the group blamed for the April attack in Kashmir, as a terrorist organisation. The attack had triggered the worst conflict between India and Pakistan in decades.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio said TRF is a "front and proxy" of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist group based in Pakistan.

Keep ReadingShow less
Diane Abbott

Diane Abbott has been suspended again by Labour after repeating comments about different forms of racism in a radio interview.

Getty Images

Labour suspends Diane Abbott again over race comments

THE LABOUR PARTY has suspended Diane Abbott, the UK’s longest-serving female MP, after she repeated remarks on racism that had previously led to her suspension.

Abbott, a prominent figure in British left-wing politics and the first Black woman elected to parliament, was initially suspended by Labour in 2023 after she said the prejudice faced by Jewish people was similar to, but not the same as, racism.

Keep ReadingShow less
sunil-bharti-mittal

This is Mittal’s ninth honorary doctorate and his third from a UK institution. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

University of Bath awards honorary doctorate to Sunil Mittal

SUNIL BHARTI MITTAL, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, has been awarded an honorary doctorate in business administration by the University of Bath in the United Kingdom, the company said on Thursday.

The University of Bath is ranked among the UK’s top ten universities and is placed within the top 10 per cent globally, the statement added.

Keep ReadingShow less
Chemmani Sri Lanka

The gravesite is one of dozens unearthed across the country. (Photo: X)

x

Child’s remains found in Sri Lanka’s Chemmani mass grave

THE skeletal remains of a girl aged between four and five have been identified among 65 sets of human remains exhumed from a mass grave in Sri Lanka’s Jaffna district. The site first came into focus during the LTTE conflict in the mid-1990s.

“The findings of the excavation at the Chemmani mass grave were reported to the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court on on Tuesday (15) by Raj Somadeva, a forensic archaeologist overseeing the exhumation,” Jeganathan Tathparan, a lawyer, said on Thursday (17).

Keep ReadingShow less