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Original poster

Diversity schemes for young people - mixed race child.

287 replies

Florencesndzebedee · 20/08/2025 15:33

I have a dc who is currently an undergraduate. I am mixed race, my dh is white. Dc is fair skinned but, through my heritage, also has black heritage (my dad is from the Caribbean).

The landscape is tough at the moment getting work placements/internships but some of these schemes are open to dc of black heritage only. My dc is reluctant to apply as he said he’d feel like a fraud, purely on looks - he looks like he might be Spanish or Greek but has blue eyes. The criteria are quite vague other than under represented people )within the organisation) of black/african /Caribbean heritage. I feel like he is entitled to apply and these schemes would give him more options.

Does anyone have any experience of these particular schemes or how they select?

OP posts:
SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:23

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You're very clever.

Or......

Yup it's the latter.

BeverleyMackerr · 21/08/2025 00:22

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SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:22

Alicealig · 20/08/2025 17:29

Where is the inequality? We are equal! If you believe you've been genuinely discriminated against based on the colour of your skin then we have courts and tribunerals that will make a judgement against someone for this.

What has happened is we've created an environment that rewards victimisation. So the first thing many people do, if for example someone of a specific race doesn't get the job they wanted over a white person, is to shout and scream racism when in reality this was nothing to do with it.

It's so damaging to black people to be told over and over they're disadvantaged and by default are seen as 'lesser than' by the society they live in. Please just stop this buying into the narrative and assuming because people say there is research that it exists, as it doesn't!

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Well said. Get ready to be told you a.) have a personality disorder.

Or b) you're mad

I've been told both.

Imagine if I did indeed suffer with mental illness. Clearly good game for the white virtue signallers.

SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:19

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Go virtue signal elsewhere. The amount of 'likes' on my comments shows I'm not the "mad" one.

BeverleyMackerr · 21/08/2025 00:18

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SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:12

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Ps you do realise Randall wasn't mad don't you ? Or do you not know the story ?

SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:11

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BeverleyMackerr · 21/08/2025 00:08

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SquishedMallow · 21/08/2025 00:03

I will say this (and not make apologies) discrimination against non white people does not exist in the UK. It's not allowed . It's illegal.

Go to Qatar, UAE, anywhere in fact? You'll find there's overt racism. The UK : not.

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:58

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Go on: explain exactly how you've diagnosed a "personality disorder" from my posts ! I'm interested...

PinkArt · 20/08/2025 23:57

StripyShirt · 20/08/2025 23:41

Approximately 80% of the UK population is white, overall, with only 4% being black. Scotland is around 90% white, if I remember correctly.

Given the above, most institutions/workplaces should be overwhelmingly white.

There is an unquestioned assumption that diversity is good. That also raises the question 'what is diversity and how do we measure it?'

Is there a heirarchy of diversity? Is a white working class woman more or less diverse than a middle class black disabled man? If they are both employed in a factory, putting jam jars into boxes, how would diversity be of value? There's a strong argument that homogenity can be more useful - a team of similar people may be much more cohesive than a team of disparate members.

Edited
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I'm not really sure what to say to the suggestion that more diversity isn't a positive thing, in relation to my industry. Is the best telly going to be made for everyone if the ideas only come from one small sector of society? Not to my mind. Presumably the industry that the OPs son is considering has some similar issues that it's looking to address.
I can't speak personally on race or disability but I know as a woman I can tell when other women haven't been involved at important stages of the creative process. It shows in the initial concept, in the stories, in the casting, in the hiring of the team.
A truly diverse workplace would be one where there was no diversity hierarchy, because so many different, intersectional, groups would already be represented. TV needs more working class workers as much as it needs more POC as much as it needs more disabled workers.

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:55

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Go on then explain yourself? I'm genuinely baffled

BeverleyMackerr · 20/08/2025 23:54

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SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:54

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Reported (of course)

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:53

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I'm sorry? What ?

BeverleyMackerr · 20/08/2025 23:52

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SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:43

Smurphy99 · 20/08/2025 22:58

Could you actually imagine a company publicly saying they will only hire white people? Imagine the uproar from non-white people? How is this actually allowed? You say white privileged exists, it may do, I don’t know, but I doubt any company has actually ever publicly said “we will only hire white people”. Why is this acceptable?

It's not acceptable. It's just certain white people like to virtue signal. (It's rarely black and brown people coming out with this divisive shit)

StripyShirt · 20/08/2025 23:41

PinkArt · 20/08/2025 21:36

It's a very well known quote about the industry, said by then BBC Director General, Greg Dyke, about 20 years ago.
It's still quoted now because the industry still has a long way to go at reflecting the viewers it makes programmes for. Senior roles especially are still overwhelmingly populated by straight, white, able bodied, middle class men, who went to private schools.
It's not racist for me to acknowledge that despite some improvement in the last 5 years, if you look around most crews, most edits, most production offices, on the whole you are seeing a sea of white faces.

Show quote history

Approximately 80% of the UK population is white, overall, with only 4% being black. Scotland is around 90% white, if I remember correctly.

Given the above, most institutions/workplaces should be overwhelmingly white.

There is an unquestioned assumption that diversity is good. That also raises the question 'what is diversity and how do we measure it?'

Is there a heirarchy of diversity? Is a white working class woman more or less diverse than a middle class black disabled man? If they are both employed in a factory, putting jam jars into boxes, how would diversity be of value? There's a strong argument that homogenity can be more useful - a team of similar people may be much more cohesive than a team of disparate members.

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:40

Jellycatspyjamas · 20/08/2025 22:27

There’s a tonne of research that shows racism is alive and well in current recruitment and employment practices, it’s not something that can be consigned to the history books just yet, sadly. Schemes like this are intended to counter the impact of systemic racism.

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That's bullshit. I'm calling you out.

Digup · 20/08/2025 23:38

No your son should not apply for this scheme. Even if he’s technically eligible, he doesn’t feel the need of it.

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:38

MapWall · 20/08/2025 23:13

You really need to stop telling people what equality is and racism is as you do not seem to understand.

There are some very unintelligent and uneducated comments from some people on this thread. I shouldn’t be surprised really.

And there is a certain kind of person who says, ‘I don’t care if people are pink, purple, green etc’ (previous poster). They always show their true colours when they make those comments!

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You're very naive. I'm guessing you see colour first and will bend all truth to fit your "anti-racism" stance.

Why don't you try treating black people as equals? That includes dislike you know? You don't have to instantly like someone because they're black. I think that's called being patronising

SquishedMallow · 20/08/2025 23:34

EmeraldShamrock000 · 20/08/2025 23:29

@SquishedMallow If the cap fits. 🧢

Can you explain? (Oh white person)

EmeraldShamrock000 · 20/08/2025 23:30

Florencesndzebedee · 20/08/2025 23:29

I think I’ll bow out as the thread has taken a different tack but I’m grateful for all of the helpful and thought provoking comments.

Me too, take care.

EmeraldShamrock000 · 20/08/2025 23:29

@SquishedMallow If the cap fits. 🧢

Original poster
Florencesndzebedee · 20/08/2025 23:29

I think I’ll bow out as the thread has taken a different tack but I’m grateful for all of the helpful and thought provoking comments.

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