UK MPs and campaigners demand hair discrimination to be designated as form of racism
October 20, 2021, 6:55 am

UK MPs and campaigners demand hair discrimination to be designated as form of racism

Afro textured hair/Pixabay

The Sky News reported, a group of MPs and campaigners have urged the equality watchdog to publish guidance that would designate hair discrimination as a form of racism.

It said, a letter signed by Kim Johnson MP and backed by The Halo Collective and Glamour Magazine calls for textured hair to become a protected characteristic.

The letter hopes the guidance would raise awareness of hair discrimination cases in the UK and highlight it as a serious legal issue.

According to the report, hair discrimination can be using offensive words to describe a person's afro or asking to Grouptouch textured hair without consent.

In some of the worst examples, children have faced disciplinary action in school and professionals have lost out on work.

L'Myah Sharae, who founded the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Equality in Education, said: "Can you imagine being a child and being told that your hair was not suitable for an educational environment, it's just not acceptable.

"People feel they have to conform to mirror eurocentric hairstyles in order to progress in the workplace or within education and that is completely and utterly problematic."

But others do question their styles.

Whether it's braids, dreadlocks, or a simple 'fro, many people believe the way they express themselves through their hair, may be used against them and fear they won't be considered "professional".

Anastasia Chikezie has been a natural hairstylist for 30 years.

She remembers a time she cut the dreadlocks off of a newly qualified lawyer, as he was "concerned he wouldn't be accepted."

The Sky News mentioned that the organisers behind the letter hope that guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission would take education one step further, making afro-textured hair a protected characteristic, so that reports of racial discrimination cases are taken seriously.

The letter reads: "The repeated failure to understand the issues affecting afro hair is a typical occurrence when dealing with a variety of institutions.

"The guidance will encourage educational and workplace establishments to rethink their concepts of 'professionalism' and work towards adopting more inclusive policies, which encourage and celebrate racial diversity."

It also hopes the UK government will adopt the guidance and work with other institutions to implement changes.

Ms Sharae said: "We're hoping that the government reflects upon that and follow suit, and then also publishes official guidance via the Department for Education by the Department for Work and Pensions and by the government equalities office too."

Source: skynews

Report: Brazilian president should face 13 criminal charges for Covid errors China, UK have 'enormous potential' for cooperation in environmental protection

Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.