Guest blog: Charity So White and The Racial Equity Index are uniting as partners to join in the fight to hold this sector accountable

The Racial Equity Index is proud to announce a partnership with Charity So White as we move forward in solidarity in holding the charity sector in the UK and globally accountable for system wide racism, white supremacy culture and more. 

it is vital that self-led organising groups working to dismantle deeply embedded structures, join together to not only unify behind the aim of decolonisation, but additionally ensure that the charity sector understands that these efforts led by all volunteers are not one-off efforts and that our groups are pushing collectively for overarching systems change.The Racial Equity Index and Charity So White along with many other groups will not stop in our fight for accountability, for a more just and equitable sector.

Our partnership with Charity So White aims to support each other’s work in holding the sector accountable and ensuring that it is prioritising taking action on addressing racism. 

ALL THE W’S - WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHY?

2020 has surfaced many challenges for us to face globally. The civil rights protests have forced us all to hold a mirror and examine our role in upholding oppressive systems. The international development sector has been rocked by articles exposing racist practices and experiences by Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) working in the sector. 

At The Racial Equity Index, our attention is focused on who holds positions of power in the sector and who does not. In June 2020, a dedicated group of people came together to explore the lack of and need for a racial equity index within the international development sector.

Following the 2018 safeguarding scandal in Haiti, the cultural and systemic inequalities in the sector were highlighted for all to see.The international development sector is not governed or led by diverse people, and it should be. The white gaze casts a long shadow, which restricts INGOs from innovating, evolving, or changing their out-dated colonial structures. The roots of the international development sector are embedded within white supremacists constructs. Long standing INGOs exist to serve the most marginalised communities (without acknowledging the underdevelopment that colonisers implemented globally) to ensure that no one gets left behind. But the hypocrisy of their mission and value statements becomes glaringly clear, when these same communities are not represented in the middle or top-level positions in the INGOs. 

The Racial Equity Index will act as a barometer for all of the above and will explore how well INGOs measure up on indicators of racial equity. There have been many indices that focus on the lack of gender equity, pay gaps, and women in leadership positions - but no racial equity indexes developed for the international development sector. 

We consider that this index will be a resource for organisations- to take accountability as far as their professed dedication to racial equity and anti-racist practices. By researching how diverse and racially equal organisational internal structures are or are not, we get a vital glimpse into how seriously racial equity is being taken.

The Path We are On

As a group of volunteers, we have contributors from around the globe to ensure a holistic approach to the work. We have members from India, Indonesia, Mexico, Switzerland, United States, United Kingdom and The Netherlands. We are a group of people who identify as BIPOC individuals, and all of us have personally experienced racism in the sector. We have created this space to protect and honor each other’s lived experiences and we are progressing with our current effort by moving at the speed of trust. 

Our starting point will be to assess the international development community based in the global north to include funders and large iNGOs. We will be publishing a report in the coming months which assesses the existing racial equity indexing in the social justice organisational space. 

We are building a clear picture of the state of the sector by globally mapping the sector and asking what the top 5 issues are that people think about when considering racial equity from an organisational point of view. Data will be collected and we will set up focus groups to dig deeper into what the data is telling us. Finally we aim to create a scoring system, developed by focus groups based on the definitions they produce. All processes will be noted in our methodology and reported transparently to the public. Once the index has been developed, a test group of organisations will be rated before the release of the full index. 

We know the road ahead is long, so our values are collaborative and allow us to commit to this work wholeheartedly - we practice radical empathy and transparency, and work by being trauma informed and mindful of others whilst actively listening to those we engage with. Our commitment as a group to transparency means that  at every point we will call on the general public to provide feedback, suggestions, and comments into the build of the index.

The Racial Equity Index group knows that this journey is just the beginning of our work of providing measures of accountability for a sector facing a deep need for systemic change. But a commitment to change is what is needed now more than ever. For too long the systems of white supremacy and racism have been upheld by the charity sector in the UK and the International Development sector globally. Charity So White and The Racial Equity Index will be supporting each other in solidarity to amplify the work we do.

ABOUT

The Racial Equity Index aims to build an index for racial equity and provide a barometer for the international development space. Our index is being built by people who have a lived experience of racism within the international development space. 

Charity So White aims to root out racism in the charity sector. Their vision is a charity sector that is taking the lead on tackling and rooting out racism. Charity So White wants to see a shift in fundamental structures across the charity sector, where our sector, leaders and decision-makers reflect the communities that we work with.