The CARG 2033 Annual Conference – what a pleasure to have watched!

On the 13^th May, the Campaign Against Racism Group (otherwise known as "CARG") held its 2023 Annual Conference, which I was lucky enough to attend online and found not only its content thought-provoking but forward-thinking and inspiring (especially as a mum of 2 beautiful autistic mixed-race children who love books).

The webinar covered 4 key areas:

1. Conversations with ESEA Councillors (who described why they chose to go into politics, shared their personal and professional experiences of racism and what their respective councils were doing as to how to deal with and prevent instances of racism in their constituencies). This was extremely moving and powerful to watch - seeing what motivated and encouraged these champions by their experiences and expertise to stand up to racism. It was inspiring to me and still is! I was glad I could watch the Webinar again online as upon seeing speakers like our own CLD Linda Chung, Alex Yip and Katie Thornburrow share with us so much (especially having had the opportunity to chat to Alex and Linda remotely, I needed some time away from the live event to process what I was watching and listening to). They are doing so much to make things better and I am extremely grateful to them!

2. Education - namely, discussing the 'Diversity of Books and the Impact on Representation in Education'. I loved this part of the webinar as (previously mentioned) my children adore books and Maisie Chan is a writer whose books I have enjoyed sharing with my children. To hear the difficulties she, Dr Hannah Ho and Angelina Wong-Jardin have experienced in trying to get their works seen and published was disheartening and surprising! There is a significant and distinct lack of representation within English literature in the UK (which I must say from my observations as an autism studies student and mum, I also see in services and materials for Chinese members of the autistic community). Lord Sonny Leong's words at the end of the discussion saying 'Do not give up, believe in yourself and there are people like you that we need' hit home with me. I can say from my personal experiences that for my sons, books are an amazing way to explore parts of themselves in ways I am unable. I must say to all writers sharing their stories and creativity, you inspire and help educate numerous generations of all abilities - you are needed, more than ever! Please don't give up!
   
   

3. On Your Side - it highlighted data and evidence around hate crime targeted at ESEA communities, which sadly has massively increased in recent years. How Corona virus has been portrayed in the media and how China and Asia has been portrayed in the process has certainly played a part in this. The facts truly spoke for themselves and it was discomforting, to say the least. Yinsey Wang, Andy Fearn, and Tra My Hicken did, however, an amazing job of looking not only as to what was needed to best support the ESEA community by actually offering sensible support based on what the community wanted (like, for example, a 24/7 helpline which accommodates telephone support in a multitude of languages by trained and trusted operators - the number for the service is 0808 801 0393), but also in looking towards the future. The consortium s comprehensive and I think more broadly in the UK we need to talk more about this and what everyone can do actively to support others experiencing targeted hate crime and racism. This neatly lead onto the 4^th section of the webinar.
   
   

4. Keeping safe - the talk given by Pat Davey focused on how other ethnic communities have dealt with hate crime and how we may respond when we or those around us experience hate crime and racism be it in person or remotely online. It was a very deep, detailed, practical and useful discussion. My husband has experienced awful encounters with some truly horrible and ignorant people and the contents of Pat's talk is sound advice. It covered aspects like using critical-thinking if safe to gently challenge assumptions around a person's ethnic background, to detach personally from what is being said (a thing I find easier to write than actually do personally) and setting boundaries with warnings. DEFUSE was a very interesting tool and acronym which certainly helps a person placed in a dangerous and volatile situation and one I suggest looking at (you can watch this in part 4 of the webinar and indeed any sections of the Webinar online at https://www.carguk.com/carg-annual-conference-2023 - I know I have watched each section a few times). Pat also discussed the importance of reporting hate crime and abuse.

I was truly impressed at the depth and breadth of the CARG Annual Conference and think it so important for every member of society to watch. There is so much everyone and anyone can do to stand up against racism, prevent and stop discrimination and violence against Chinese and Asian people and ensure that there is better representation and accurate depictions of East and South East Asians across all fields and mediums. Thanking all of those who took part in that Webinar and I look forward to next year's Conference! 😊

If anyone would like to help support and bring about change, I highly suggest looking at the CARG website for their live petitions and events https://www.carguk.com/