AN INSPIRING Basingstoke woman has recorded a powerful video urging residents of the town to come together to fight racism as she invites an open conversation on the Black Lives Matter movement.

Resilience coach, international speaker and book author Faith Ruto has been moved to speak on the subject of racial inequality in the wake of the anti-racism protests taking place up and down the country.

Here in Basingstoke, six peaceful marches have taken place over the course of the last week as residents call for an end to systematic racism which sees black people discriminated against or subjected to everyday microaggressions.

Speaking openly and frankly about her experience, the mother-of-two said she initially was reluctant to talk about the subject but made the decision after daughter, aged nine, told her: "If you stay silent, nothing will change."

Basingstoke Gazette:

In a moving video shared to YouTube, Faith said: “I want my children to know their mother did something when this was going on. When we look back at the history books, they will see we had the 2020 coronavirus pandemic - and we also had black racism pandemic. I want to say I was there. In the midst of it, I was there, using my platform and voice to help others."

The mother-of-two said the murder of George Floyd has reminded her of the inequalities that exist.

According to The Guardian in a poll carried out in December 2018, black people are twice as likely to have encountered abuse or rudeness from a stranger.

While figures from Hampshire Constabulary reveal black men in Basingstoke are 17 times more likely to be stopped by police officers than their white counterparts. 

And nationally, one in seven people from ethnic minorities have been wrongly treated as a potential shoplifter compared to one in 25 of white people.

Faith said: "As much as I just want to see myself as a human being and I don’t want to focus on my skin, it has only brought it home to me that me and my children are seen as black.

“Because of the colour of their skin, they are likely to be treated differently. They are likely to be disadvantaged and whether that is on purpose or not, there is a system that exists that automatically discriminates against black people.

“I am not saying systems are impossible to break. But here we are in 2020. I have beautiful relationships and beautiful family members who are white and from all different nationalities. But I do not see how we can progress as human beings if we do not address the issue of black people being treated differently.”

Faith, who was born in Uganda and has lived in Britain for the past thirty years, said she had seen the kindness of British people but said the is still widespread discrimination. She said: “I have seen racism against my own children. I am not joking. I have seen people treat my children differently, there is unconscious bias going on.

“If you are parents, how you treat black people will have an impact on how your children will treat black people.”

The writer recorded her thoughts and shared them on social media. She told the Gazette: "I was speaking from the heart."

Faith said: “We’ve all had our own issues with racism. I don’t want to use this platform to complain about my own issues I’ve experienced. I want to move forward. I want my family and friends to feel they are free. I want them to use their time instead of being consumed with the issue of being black.

“We cannot switch it off now. We’ve got the image of George Floyd stuck in our mind. We can’t just not do anything.

“I have seen the goodness of the British people and I do not want this to be an ‘us and them'. I want to be inclusive. I am here to drive collective positive movement and I urge all of you to listen to different views.”

She said: “It is a heavy topic. I want to reflect on how you are feeling. Are you one of those people who thinks it doesn’t affect you? Are you one of those people thinking it’s an American issue?

“For me personally, it has reminded me I am black. As much as I just want to see myself as a human being, I don’t want to focus on my skin it has only brought it home to me that me and my children are seen as black.

“Because of the colour of their skin, they are likely to be treated differently. They are likely to be disadvantaged and whether that is on purpose or not, there is a system that exists that automatically discriminates against black people.

“I am not saying systems are impossible to break. But here we are in 2020. I have beautiful relationships and beautiful family members who are white and from all different nationalities. But I do not see how we can progress as human beings if we do not address the issue of black people being treated differently.”

Of her own experience, she said: “It is a very complex matter. I am a black person originally from Uganda. I grew up with no notion of colour. But I remember on my first day of primary school being told I couldn’t speak the local language, we must speak English.”

She said this was a good and bad thing because it has helped her career but said that it is important people are “proud” of where they come from.

Faith said she followed the school of thought from Nelson Mandela when he said, “No one was born a racist”.

She said: "This is about humanity. We have a crisis here. We have had this crisis for decades it has to stop. We have a choice. The next time you see a black person - whether they are male, female or a child - just think to yourself, imagine if they were your child. How would you like them to be treated? Don't look at the colour of their skin."

Faith, who works with business leaders to give careers advice, said she often hears from black professionals about what they are up against in the workplace.

The public speaking professional said the first things she asks people to do is consider whether or not their company or firm supports black people. Faith said: “If you are experiencing racism and discrimination in your workplace, school or community, speak up. 

“I am a pragmatic person. Life is too short to be wasting time in an organisation that discriminates against black people.”

Reflecting on the death of George Floyd and the arrest of the police officers, she said she would urge protesters to remember the majority of law enforcement have good intentions.

She said: “The majority of the police are kind and they joined the profession to save lives. But I just call upon all of you today to please stand shoulder to shoulder with the black community.

She said: “We need to keep climbing this mountain of racism until it has been dismantled. Yes, there will be pockets of people who don’t want to change but guess what? That is their loss.

“To any human being reading this, I want you to really reflect and respect people who are risking their lives to protest. They are not doing it for anything else. They are doing it for humanity.”

Faith will be doing a live conversation on Black Lives Matter on June 19, at 6pm. To find out more, email info@transformation21st.com.

Faith said she hopes to work with local schools and businesses to help educate people about the importance of equality.

You can follow Faith on Instagram here and on Facebook here.

What are microagressions?

According to Psychology Today, microagressions are verbal, non-verbal and environmental slights, snugs or insults - whether intentional or unintentional - which send the message that they are lesser human beings.

It could be something such as asking black British person where they are "really" from or crossing the street when a black person approaches them. The hidden message there is that you and your group are criminals.

Or it could be commenting that a person of colour speaks "good English". The hidden message there is you are not a true British person. You are a foreigner.