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What is Professionalism?
Our Year 10 work experience student reflects on her 2 weeks working with Rebel Led and the lessons she has learnt about the world of work, professionalism and inclusion. Before starting work experience, I knew next to nothing about the working world, and had no actual expectations. Even though my school taught lessons about work, and the skills needed to work, my knowledge was still limited, as their idea of work was outdated, and did not account for the way companies work and function in the modern world. Needless to say, this was new territory for me, and there were a lot of things I had to learn whilst working there.
What is Belonging?
If we as students see teachers stand up for students more often, this will create a sense of acceptance, and the feeling that we have someone looking out for us, ready to defend us in the event that we become targets for ridicule. This creates a sense of trust between teachers and students, creating a closer relationship between the two groups, and making students feel more inclined to listen to and respect teachers, which in turn reduces the amount of students acting out in class, as well as improves grades. This will also cause students who regularly ridicule others to no longer have a platform to do such, which may lead to them picking on students less in general, not just in the classroom. This lowers the stress of teach
“We’re all equal”
Typically, I’d discuss a couple of Islamophobic incidents, show you the data or make some suggestions as to how non-Muslims can become better allies and punctuate it with some cute, “we’re all equal” rhetoric, but I couldn’t. In fact, the whole team has been somewhat stunned by global events all month, causing a silence that seems almost complicit. It feels impossible to acknowledge the mistreatment of Muslims nationally and worldwide without making reference to the war in the Middle-East. When looking at the history of the events and the current context since October, we can see the war is not about religion… that neither Jew nor Muslim wants to see their communities as victims of violence, but here in the UK it's really difficult to reconcile that with the images we see
A fitting beginning
The 1st of October marks the start of Black History Month in the UK and the 2023 theme is ‘Saluting Our Sisters’.
As such it felt like the best time to launch a business that is run by women and dedicated to improving the inclusivity culture at work, school, the gym…or wherever it may be. So here we are… Rebel Led Training and Consultancy.
Now part of my passion for inclusivity stems from growing up black in the UK. I am neurodivergent. I am cis female. But I have felt stigmatisation and discrimination significantly more on the grounds of race than any other attribute in my life.
But in spite of having to learn to navigate those circumstances, I’m so so grateful.
I was born in Manchester back in the 80’s but my Jamaican heritage is something I have always been proud of. There’s something about Jamaican culture that encourages you to stand a little taller and to remember that no matter how quiet you may be, there is some boasie energy coursing through your veins that you can unleash as some sort of super power when you need to. You need not rely upon your own confidence because the Jamaican within will somehow ignite and carry you through.
My grandmother left Jamaica in 1961, some 13 years after the Windrush landing but only months before Jamaica claimed her independence from the British Empire. Jamaica at the time was erupting with social and political changes. The devastation of the hurricane some 10 years prior had left my ancestral family of cultivators in a harsh state of being, so my grandmother left her 3 children, all under 5, in the trusted care of her mother in search of a better life.
Even though time had past since the initial wave of Caribbean migration in the 1950’s; she was still met with rhetorics like; ‘no Blacks, no dogs, no Irish’. Like many before her she joined the brigade of Caribbean nurses that fortified the NHS, but had to deal with patience refusing her care, being denied accommodation, but persistently fought to build a life.
This is usually the part of the story where hope springs, the rainbow appears after the storm and you’d imagine the living happily ever after part to kick in, but her story is not a romantic one. The hardships she endured were the kind that I sometimes wish I didn’t know about. The storms she weathered would quieten for a while but always seem to regain strength. She experienced betrayal, abuse and the loss of two children. She experienced deep love, swift loss and an abiding air of melancholy that was only visible to those who could see through the mask she so stubbornly held in place. She has always been a bit of a fashionista and was never afraid to flash a bit of leg. Her hair was always permed, nails were always painted and she used her appearance as a mark of her success.
To many she could be harsh and even quite brutal when giving someone a dressing down. You would only ever get one opportunity to cross her. She has never been particularly forgiving, or sentimental or even very maternal. She is tough, has a wicked sense of humour and has poured love into me since always. But what she has always had is a willingness to survive that I have only ever seen rivalled by one other woman in my lifetime; her daughter- my mother.
Nowadays, as dementia takes hold, my Grandmother’s toughness has melted and a softness resides in her expression. But she still treats me to glimpses of the girl she used to be. On this day when we salute our sisters, I choose to salute Ms Inez, my Grandmother. The boasiest that ever was or will be.
#BlackHistoryMonthUK
#SaluteOurSisters
#BlackHistoryMonth2023
#RebelLedReflections