Moments of inclusion

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27 September to 3 October marked National Inclusion Week in the UK; encouraging thousands of ‘inclusioneers’ worldwide to take action in being #UnitedForInclusion. This includes having open conversations, knowing that they may be challenging and uncomfortable, but they will drive change and inspire action and remembering that change and action are vital in our mission to make inclusion an everyday reality.

1 October was also the start of Black History Month in the UK and other parts of Europe; offering the chance to reflect on the past, present and future of the Black experience and celebrating the huge contributions that Black people have made, and continue to make within our society. This is year’s theme is: ‘Proud to be’.

One final significant date coming up is World Mental Health Day on 10 October. This year’s theme is ‘Mental health care for all: let’s make it a reality’, which also really speaks to action – specifically action to ensure no-one is left feeling alone, excluded or feeling like they can’t share what’s really going on for them.

How have you got on this week with being #UnitedForInclusion?

Whilst you are thinking about that, I thought I would share a couple of experiences and reflections; both ‘moments of truth’ linked with the celebratory days above.

The first experience was someone recently expressing an opinion that they didn’t think ‘racism was a useful term because it was far too broad’ and that ‘the Black Lives Matter moment was a US issue and had no relevance in the UK’. Once I got over the shock of hearing an opinion like this, I decided to speak up and suggested the book ‘Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race’ by British author Reni Eddo-Lodge might be useful; a book specifically written for the UK context and the often lack of acknowledgment of race and racism. This conversation showed me that whilst we’ve made progress on being more ‘colour brave’ to acknowledge racial differences, there’s still more work to do. Let’s keep front of mind that every voice raised against racism chips away at its power.

The second reflection is related to mental health and how we prioritise looking after our own, but also those around us. If someone you know is showing signs of not coping – what would you do? We’ve seen some high profile sport stars taking action for their own mental health recently (Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles immediately come to mind, but there are others too). This is of course a positive step in leading the way to normalise that good mental health is as important as physical health. Let’s notice someone struggling, ask them what they need or how your can support. You will make a huge difference to them, but also to normalising this conversation.

Thanks for reading and I encourage you to think about what action you will take to be #UnitedForInclusion and Happy Black History Month and Happy World Mental Day.