{"id":4052,"date":"2019-03-25T14:09:53","date_gmt":"2019-03-25T14:09:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/law-news\/?p=4052"},"modified":"2020-02-06T08:32:26","modified_gmt":"2020-02-06T08:32:26","slug":"kent-students-launch-decoloniseukc-manifesto","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/law-news\/kent-students-launch-decoloniseukc-manifesto\/","title":{"rendered":"Kent students launch #DecoloniseUKC manifesto"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kent students launched a #DecoloniseUKC Manifesto<\/a> on 20 March as part of a day-long conference at the University\u2019s Canterbury campus.<\/p>\n

The manifesto was\u00a0created using data collected through focus groups led by the students\u00a0with other students aimed at discussing\u00a0their experiences as black, Asian and ethnic minority students at the University.<\/p>\n

The manifesto\u00a0voices their concerns and shows what they want to see changed at Kent in terms of the curriculum as well as the institution itself.\u00a0The project has been facilitated and led by Kent Law School Senior Lecturer\u00a0Dr Suhraiya Jivraj<\/a>, as part of her module on ‘Race, Religion and Law’. She said: \u2018The project, funded by two Teaching Enhancement Small Support Awards (TESSA) and supported by the Executive Group\u2019s Race Equality Champion,\u00a0has been crucial in empowering students of colour.\u00a0Through the project, they have skilled-up into capable researchers\u00a0and<\/em>\u00a0change-actors,\u00a0co-producing important knowledge that amplifies student voices on difficult issues like mental health and racism on campus as well as improving attainment for all.\u2019<\/p>\n

The conference, entitled\u00a0Decolonising the Curriculum<\/em><\/a>, was also student-led and featured a\u00a0number of high profile speakers, including a keynote from\u00a0Dr Karen Salt<\/a>\u00a0of the University of Nottingham who has researched \u2018how black nation-states have fought for their continued existence within a highly racialised world\u2019.<\/p>\n

Other leading academics included\u00a0Dr Deborah Gabriel<\/a>, of Bournemouth University, author of\u00a0Layers of Blackness<\/em>\u00a0<\/a>(2007), and founder of Black Academics,\u00a0Dr Jason Arday<\/a>, Co-editor of\u00a0Dismantling Race in Higher Education<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(2018) and\u00a0Remi Joseph Salisbury\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0Azeezat Johnson<\/a>, co-editors of\u00a0The<\/em>\u00a0Fire Now: Anti-Racist Scholarship in Times of Explicit Racial Violence<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(2018).<\/p>\n

The\u00a0conference also featured\u00a0writer and spoken-word poet\u00a0Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan<\/a> and\u00a0Aaron Thompson<\/a>, President of the University\u2019s\u00a0Kent Union.<\/a><\/p>\n

Welcoming the conference and the launch of the\u00a0#DecoloniseUKC Manifesto<\/em>, Professor April McMahon, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Education, said: \u2018This excellent event demonstrates that the\u00a0University is committed to providing an inclusive and diverse environment for all its students and staff.\u00a0We know we have more to do to deliver this \u2013 we welcome our students\u2019 views and contributions, and look forward to discussing next steps.\u2019<\/p>\n

For more details of the manifesto and conference see the #Decolonise UKC website.<\/a><\/p>\n

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