racism – Citizenship, 'Race' and Belonging research group

Feminism, co-option and (racial) neoliberalism

12th June 2017 CRaB admin Blogs, Uncategorised

By Terese Jonsson At a recent event organised by the Women’s and Gender Studies research cluster at the University of Portsmouth, titled ‘Feminisms, anti-racism, social justice: Theories and strategies for our times’, the topic of feminism’s co-option by capitalist and racist forces was much discussed. The co-option of feminist language and politics by a variety of nefarious forces is a recurrent topic of feminist concern, with some of the most common culprits identified as capitalism/neoliberalism, racism, imperialism. For example, Nancy Fraser’s and Angela McRobbie’s analysis of the neoliberal co-option of feminist language and politics in the service of the market

The dangers of British fundamentalism

12th April 2017 CRaB admin Blogs, News and Events

By Terese Jonsson Do you know your ‘fundamental British values’? According to the UK government, these are ‘democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs’. Since 2014, the Department for Education advises all schools to ‘actively promote’ fundamental British values, and any school wishing to be graded as ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted must demonstrate that this promotion lies ‘at the heart’ of its work. Since the passing of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act in 2015, school teachers, university lecturers and administrators, local authority workers, doctors, nurses, prison, probation and police officers must

Racism on Display: what should we do with racist material culture?

5th April 2017 Jessica Moody Blogs

If you walk around the delightful ‘Shambles’ of the historic city of York, through the small cobbled street of timber-framed buildings huddled together, you’ll find more than over-priced cupcakes and novelty-sized Yorkshire Tea teapots. The Shambles was once known as The Great Flesh Shambles, having served as the butcher’s street – and meat hooks still survive where animal carcasses would have once hung. If you peer into the tiny touristy gift shops here you will see other bodies hanging; the small ‘kitsch’ outlines of golliwog dolls hanging lifelessly from display hooks in shopfront windows, like so many lynchings. This ‘taste’