Response to the Government’s plans to ease lockdown
Throughout the crisis, Charity So White has documented the various ways BAME communities are being disproportionately impacted – including in health, housing, employment and policing. People from BAME communities have been contracting, and dying from, the virus in significantly higher numbers. Data from the ONS has shown that black people are four times as likely to die from Covid-19 than their white counterparts.
We are alarmed by what the easing of lockdown means for BAME workers and communities — who are disproportionately likely to work in low-paid or public-facing jobs. The government’s revised “stay alert” slogan shunts responsibility onto individuals for protecting themselves from the virus and more people will now be faced with the stark choice between keeping safe and economic survival.
We condemn any plans to ease lockdown whilst it is still unsafe to do so, and whilst protections for workers and the most marginalised members of society remain woefully inadequate. We urge charities to stand up for their workers — particularly those from BAME backgrounds — and resist calls to return people for work until they can guarantee that it is safe for everyone.
Actions:
Charity So White has published a live position paper on Covid-19 here, which has further recommendations for how civil society can put racial justice at the heart of their response to the pandemic.
Last month, Charity So White published an open letter calling on funders to ensure that their responses to COVID-19 do not further exclude or harm BAME-led charities and communities – in light of recent news we feel this is more urgent than ever. Please read and request to put your name to the letter here.
