Rejecting racism
With the world’s attention turned to Black Lives Matter once more, we resolved there would be no place for institutional racism at Oxford Saïd. Here’s what we did next
The death of George Floyd in Minnesota in May 2020 and the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement have once again shone a spotlight on the issue of institutional racism, racial injustice and disparities in equality and opportunity. The University of Oxford had its own flashpoint when more than a thousand protesters gathered beneath the statue of Cecil Rhodes at Oriel College, demanding the University address its own colonial past.
As a school with a diverse, global student body, and one that focuses on tackling worldscale issues, Oxford Saïd also wants to confront the global systemic issue of structural and institutional racism. In June 2020, Dean Peter Tufano publicly announced a series of actions to address issues of racism at the School, and outlined how business could be an agent in the fight against it. He announced the establishment of an Oxford Saïd Anti-Racism Initiative Taskforce that would formally operate for two months from 15 July to 15 September. As a video for the initiative comments, ‘There is a feeling of responsibility for being in a place like Oxford Saïd, where we have the potential to impact the current narrative in a positive way.’
The taskforce’s remit was to maintain an environment that is inclusive, respectful and equitable, where every member of the community could thrive; to lead meaningful change to address systemic racism in society; and to continue to be an example of best practice. One of the professors leading the work is Saïd Business School’s Colin Mayer. Fifty years after Milton Friedman wrote his seminal piece arguing that corporations should focus on shareholder returns, Mayer and others such as Rebecca Henderson from Harvard Business School are leading an effort to help people understand the issues around stakeholder capitalism — and equity and diversity.
The taskforce needed to be anti-racism champions within the School, advocating racial equality and cultural diversity. It set out to examine multiple aspects of Oxford Saïd’s environment and identify opportunities within its plans, strategies, policies, programmes, processes and practices to address racism. It also committed to presenting a report including recommendations, both medium and long term, which will aim to enact change to combat systemic racism where it exists within the School. This was submitted in September 2020.
Two co-chairs, Arunma Oteh and Andrew White, were appointed to lead the taskforce, with a brief to guide and facilitate the members, who include faculty, researchers, professional staff, students, and SBS alumni. It also welcomed experts with experience of working in diversity, inclusion and racial equality. ‘As long as we only talk about how we can combat racism, as opposed to how we can find a way to better celebrate race and diversity, we will always have a shortfall,’ said Yasmin Kumi, founder of Africa Foresight Group.
Taskforce members were chosen on the following criteria: knowledge and understanding of anti-racism; active members of the Oxford Saïd community; a proven ability to consult within and across their sector; skilled in listening and analysis; and committed to a collective process. This last directive has particular resonance for Oteh: ‘There’s an African proverb,’ she says. ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together. That really applies to this initiative, and the importance of it being an inclusive process.’
PLANTING TREES
‘The Saïd Business School has always been an institution that tackles issues related to global challenges, whether it’s climate change or issues around inequality,’ says Oteh. ‘The kind of students who are attracted to Saïd Business School are those who want to solve problems in society. So we organised ourselves into a Black Lives Matter allies group and eventually from there came the idea of starting a series of conversations with our class and the rest of the School ecosystem.’ One of the ideas she and White had was to create an opportunity for people to share their lived experiences of systemic and institutional racism; a multicultural listening event, in a series of lectures entitled ‘Listen, Learn, Lead’.
Everything from insidious micro-aggressions in the workplace (easy to overlook, but cumulatively damaging) to more explicit racism in society was discussed. The second session focused on learning and unlearning, with a discussion of terms such as white supremacy and covert racism, providing historical context and examples, with the goal of highlighting how complex these topics can be, while encouraging everyone to continue educating themselves to avoid being a part of the problem.
Oteh stresses the business case for diversity, saying: ‘Millennials are voting with their feet. They are not interested in working for organisations where their ideals are not being met.’
The initiative recommended specific training for leaders and managers. ‘At the end of the day, leaders have to be taught,’ she said. ‘I think that there’s a recognition around the importance of grooming leaders so they understand how to make sure they have inclusive environments.’
WORDS: ALI CATTERALL, BEHIYE HASSAN
PHOTOGRAPHY: ALAMY
