“EVEN NOW, I AM RACIST”, TEACHER PROCLAIMS TO THE CROWD
One of the invited speakers at the summit was a British teacher named Kirsty Cooper, who addressed the crowd remotely in the form of a video message.
Cooper described herself as a “white head teacher”, adding: “I live and teach in a county that’s 92% white.” She said that her “anti-racist” journey began in 2020 “with the murder of George Floyd,” and confessed that she is herself “racist”.
“I’m part of the problem,” she said.
“I found that hard to accept. I found this really hard to accept, that I benefit from racism in my life – in my personal life, and my professional life. Even now, I am racist – but I can learn to be anti-racist.”
She added: “I’ve put a ‘but’ in there, I’m sure without meaning to…I’ve put that in because it makes me feel a little bit better. Because it’s really hard to accept that you are racist – that I benefit from this and I am racist. And you benefit from the system.”
POOR WHITE PEOPLE ALSO HAVE “WHITE PRIVILEGE”
Cooper also went on to discuss “white fragility”, and said that some white people find it “hard to accept” that they have an inherent privilege in life.
“[People say] ‘I’m not privileged’ – the idea of white privilege and that advantage is hard to accept. Growing up I wasn’t financially privileged,” she said, adding: “I really understand white privilege now – I understand completely the advantages that gives me.”
ART CURRICULUM ONLY CONSISTED OF “DEAD WHITE EUROPEAN MEN”
She also described how her school had revamped its curriculum to become more anti-racist.
“We looked at our art curriculum – it was all dead white European men,” she said.
“And we’ve now got a really vibrant amazing wonderful art curriculum which I absolutely love which we’ve just re-evaluated, and we’ve actually added in some neurodiversity in there too.”
She further added that there was a need to change the fact that “everybody in the history curriculum is white.”
“WE ARE THANKFUL FOR THE FUNDING WE RECEIVE FROM OUR SPONSORS”
The topic of NGO funding also came up during the event.
Raphael Olympio – youth mentor with the Cork Migrant Centre – thanked various Irish government departments for making their work possible.
“We are thankful for the funding we receive from all our sponsors, and we would like to thank the Department of Justice and Equality for the funding we received under the National Action Plan Against Racism (NAPAR),” he said.
“With this funding, the Cork Migrant Centre were able to employ two part time anti-racist development workers: Leen Maarouf, and Sylvia Wohlfarth.”
He said that these two had been involved with developing an “anti-racist toolkit” which would be used with schools and organisations to help combat racism.
“The NAPAR funding has also given us the opportunity to work with Kerry CYPSC (Children and Young People’s Services Committees)”, he said, asking the audience to give a “big round of applause” to CYPSC’s Tracey Holt for her anti-racist work.
Notably, Gript asked Roderic O’Gorman’s Department of Equality if it was true that they had funded the group in question in general.
A Department spokesperson replied that “Cork Migrant Centre has not received funding under the Ireland Against Racism Fund, which was established by DCEDIY in 2023 under the National Action Plan Against Racism.”
However, they neglected to mention that they had given funding to the NGO under the Communities Integration Fund just last year.
Asked whether the Department was aware of the rhetoric used at the event, the spokesperson replied: “The Department was not represented at the Cork Anti-Racism Summit, and therefore cannot comment on the reported statements by participants or performers at the event.”
“FUNDING IS VITAL” FROM THE STATE TO KEEP NGO “TENDRILS” IN SOCIETY
Also on the topic of funding, CEO and Founder of Anti-Racist Cumbria in the UK, Janett Walker, said she became involved in anti-racist work after George Floyd was “lynched” in America. She also said that it was “vital” to get State funding in order to push NGO “tendrils” out into society and “keep racism and anti-racism on the agenda.”
“Funding is vital – and it’s at this point that I’m talking to stakeholders,” she said.
“What we’re already seeing a trend of, since George Floyd’s lynching, is that loads of money was thrown at us at the beginning. But we’re having to work harder now, because we want to go back to EDI (Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) – we want to go back to something that’s easier and a little bit more comfortable. And actually, we need to keep racism and anti-racism on the agenda.”
She added: “White power is real, and it changes to suit the agenda to keep the power where they want it to be kept.”
Walker said that resourcing from government departments was an important part of the anti-racism process.
“Resources from your Department of Education is going to be really, really important so that you can get that work out there,” she said.
“I always think of it being like tendrils…we can keep on stretching that work out as far as we can make it go.”
CHILDREN START SHOWING RACIAL BIAS AS YOUNG AS 3-YEARS-OLD
She also claimed that children start showing racial bias around age 3.
“Around the age of 3 children become aware of skin colour,” she said.
“They starts showing racial biases in line with societal attitudes.”
Walker added that her group had anti-racist resources for infants, primary and secondary schools, as well as universities.
“PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT RACIST” ARE “USELESS”
The speaker went on to say that people who are “not racist” are “useless”.
“We’re not interested in people who are not racist,” she said.
“They are completely useless and pointless. And actually, they add to the issues. We are looking for people who are anti-racist – not simply ‘not racist’.
“So if you’re in that camp of ‘not racist’, then you have got work, and you need to do that work.”
HEARD FROM UCC PROFESSOR WHO ENGAGES WITH “GOVERNMENT CONSULTATIONS”
The event also heard from Dr. Deirdre Horgan, who is Professor of Education in the the School of Education, University College Cork. It was mentioned that she has “reported on Irish government consultations with children on a range of policy issues.”
Also speaking during the course of the event was Tanya Ward, Chief Executive of the Children’s Rights Alliance, who said that it’s like “white people” are “walking around with a backpack of invisible privileges in our society, and we don’t realise that and we all should be working collectively to get rid of that backpack so we’re all treated equally.” She also complained that “the far-right is being platformed” in Ireland, leading to discrimination in society.
The Lord Mayor of Cork, Councillor Kieran McCarthy, who was one of the final speakers, praised the event at the end, saying “This should actually be done twice a year, not once a year.”
