Why We Signed the anti-racist birmingham & west midlands Pledge
On Wednesday, 30 October, a historic moment took place in the journey toward creating an Anti-Racist Birmingham and West Midlands. For the first time, leaders from every sector—city, regional, civic, public, education, private, faith, cultural, community, and voluntary—came together in a powerful show of unity at the BRIG bi-annual summit, titled “What’s Changed?”.
At this landmark event, a bold pledge was signed: “We commit to work collectively to create an Anti-Racist Birmingham and West Midlands.” This moment was more than just symbolic; it was a promise to take action, to challenge racism in all its forms, and to build a fairer, more inclusive future for our city and region.
Now, as we approach the UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Friday, 21 March, we are launching a powerful media and social media campaign in the week beginning 17 March. The Anti-Racist Birmingham and West Midlands Pledge campaign aims to highlight the voices of those who have signed the pledge—why they did so and what they are committing to in order to create lasting change.
At a time when equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) initiatives are under threat—especially in places like the USA—it is more important than ever to stand firm in our values. Birmingham and the West Midlands have a proud history of diversity and activism. This campaign is about reinforcing our commitment, ensuring that anti-racism remains a priority, and demonstrating that our collective voices will not be silenced.
To show their support and commitment, individuals and organisations have been requested to share short video messages and written statements answering two key questions:
1. Why did you sign the pledge?
2. What will you contribute to building an anti-racist city and region?
These messages will be shared across social media throughout the week, amplifying the voices of those committed to change. Additionally, a press release will be issued at the start of the campaign, highlighting the organisations taking part and their dedication to fostering an anti-racist future.
This campaign is not just about words; it is about action. By participating, we reaffirm our collective responsibility to challenge racism, promote equity, and create a region where everyone—regardless of their background—can thrive.
Some of the statements include:
“We signed the pledge because, as a community-led organisation, we believe in and proactively work to ensure all our communities are engaged and benefiting from our services. We strive to create places of welcome and celebrate the richness and diversity of our communities.”
“Racial and economic justice are intrinsically entwined. This is not about a few, errant greedy, racist people; it is about centuries of policy choices. Our current economic model is historically and structurally grounded in both racism and extractivism - with roots in colonialism and slavery. Intentional exploitation still occurs across lines of race, class, gender and other protected characteristics. Poverty in the UK and Birmingham is racialised, with Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Black people all experiencing high rates of poverty, particularly after housing costs (Marmot, 2020). Global Majority workers are over-represented in our underpaid workforce and having an underpaid workforce is essential for the capitalist system to continue to make such extreme and outrageous profits, pay high shareholder dividends and provide unrepresentative C-suite executives with average incomes of over £3.5m per year.
We are pledging to be proactively anti racist when planning our research, in our place based work and in our policy recommendations. Economic policy change that isn’t actively and intentionally anti racist will not address structural barriers and oppression faced by Global Majority people in Birmingham and the UK. Liberation, justice and an overhaul of oppressive systems is vital for the success of Birmingham’s future as a city and for Brummies as individuals.”
“We pledge to ensure BMet can and does play its part to promote and live an anti-racist and inclusive culture for its students, staff and communities it serves.
We pledge to work with other organisations to debate, share and challenge ourselves to positively impact the lives of Birmingham’s diverse citizens.”
Now is the time to stand together. Now is the time to make our voices heard. Will you join us in this movement for change?
If your organisation would like to join the campaign and sign the pledge, please send us an email.