The proposed event, We Need To Talk About Race and Gender, is a panel discussion with Linda Bellos OBE, Danielle McDonald from The Deptford People Project and anti-racism campaigner, Sara Myers, who will all discuss how the concepts of race and gender impact BAME women.
this was the statement that The Depford People Project made prior to The House of Commons 'We Need to Talk' meeting last year:
www.facebook.com/lubelluledotcom/posts/10156110925077980
(extract)
"Statement from Working class community workers from Deptford.
We are attending the women’s meeting at the House of Commons today. We would like to offer an explanation as to why this is necessary.
After many years of working at grass roots within our community we have recently been made aware of an issue that directly effects the working class and women in our area. The changes to the Gender Recognition Act will allow birth certificate changes without transition. We are an LGBTQ supporting group and we have concerns about how these changes will impact women only safe spaces.
We have never and will never support hate...
The majority of our recent projects have been working with rough sleepers, the homeless and those that have been excluded from society. The issues they face include: unsupported/ mental health illness, sexual violence and prostitution, childhood trauma and abuse, domestic violence, poverty, ex care system issues, addiction, prison, rehab, homelessness and austerity.
The people in our community that we represent are the most likely to access/ be placed in sex segregated services. Some have and will access all sex segregated services mentioned.
Our local political and community organisations have been infiltrated by a group of well meaning white middle class Goldsmiths (uni) students. These people although well intentioned have rail roaded many vital projects by introducing identity policies and intersectional thinking without truly understanding or experiencing working class issues.
Meetings we have attended for the purpose of discussing community housing projects and women’s wellness etc have been used as a platform to re educate working class people on the new academic language expected within our organisations.
As anyone from a working class back ground will tell you, these theories and ideologies rarely translate into working class communities.
The extremely small number of transsexual (I use the old term as this has a very different meaning to the university umbrella term currently thrown about) member of the community are and have always been accepted and protected.
However we have now been informed that transgender people are being routinely abused (mis gendered) and should be protected above all other marginalised groups. We can see that all that has actually changed is privileged mainly white students have adopted a set of gender identities that allow them to be considered marginalised. The people we encountered were far from marginalised. In fact they were highly educated, openly classist and aggressive.
This new politics doesn’t equate in our community or for the people we support. We are dealing with working class issues with severely marginalised people and the trans lobby is a gentrification of working class social and political movements. Note the difference between trans lobby and trans people.
No one will discuss our concerns regarding self identification. Our local Labour Party has refused to comment or debate with the working class community. We are attending the meeting this evening as this is only place that is willing to discuss theses issues.
When we are being verbally abused and called fascists and phobic because we are concerned about the effects of policy change on marginalised people it is a direct attack on working class women and grass roots organisations.
So please when you share information about this eventand attempt to shut it down be aware that you are complicit in the silencing of not only women but working class people who have not afforded the privileged of a safe space or university education."