If Racism Vanished for a Day…

Claire Stewart-Hall met with Luci Gorell Barnes and Verity Jones about the book If Racism Vanished for a Day…

16 August 2024

What is the RESPECT project?

The RESPECT Project (Racialised Experiences Project: education, children & trust) has been funded by both UKRI and UWE, Bristol, and responds to calls to understand children’s racialised experiences and the impact on mental health and wellbeing. The interdisciplinary research team of educational experts, psychologists and a socially engaged artist developed sensitive ways to work with children about racism and the project has seen them engage with around 300, 9-11 year olds across Bristol. Check out this article for a detailed description of how the team used body mapping as a creative method for data collection: British Educational Research Journal: Vol 50, No 3 (wiley.com)

What the project has done so far …

The work of RESPECT aims to highlight the racialised experiences young people navigate while amplifying their voices. This has seen the co-production of a children’s picture book called If Racism Vanished for a Day… Available in hard copy and free e-book, the book focussed on central themes the original 120 children of the project had discussed; for example their experiences of not being believed by people in authority, having their hair and bodies made fun of, not feeling they belonged or were welcome. The team then worked with 17 of the children to co-write and illustrate the final book with additional teacher resources to support further reflection and discussion. Each page reimagines what might happen if racism was not affecting our lives. Collectively imagining-forwards helps us see what we have been tolerating and looks to offer opportunities for people to reflect back and think forward about what change might look like.

The book has been distributed to libraries across Bristol and is being used in more than 1000 schools across the UK. The book has also been used in teacher education programmes, social work and police constable training. It is also available through a variety of mental health support agencies including Barnardo’s. The children in the project were adamant that racism should not be a subject that is only mentioned in schools after an incident or as part of Black History Month so the team work to raising awareness all year round. In April this year the team, with the help of young people, and AdBlock Bristol, pasted up a billboard with a page from the book. This invited all passers by to think about a future without racism and a number of schools across the south west undertook anti-racism lessons in response to it.

Next steps:

The team continue to work to amplify children’s experiences to people and organisations that matter to the children. With the support of further UWE, Bristol funding the team are currently working with the Avon and Somerset Police to inform their training, as well as muti academy trusts to explore how the racialised experiences of primary children (9-11 years) can inform secondary educational practice and learning (12-14 years).