Blog
Why Black Lives Matter!
01st October 2020
At TLG, as an organisation and as individuals, we have been deeply impacted by recent tragic events in the United States and beyond, clearly highlighting the racial inequalities that are prevalent in all parts of society, including here in the UK.
The tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Stephon Clark, Tamir Rice and many others, have brought sadness and anguish to the local communities that TLG walk alongside. My deepest sympathies go to families and friends of those who have been impacted and the communities who are feeling immense anger, grief and pain.
For those of us who don’t have lived experience of racism, these recent events and their impact on colleagues and friends, have given an insight to the pain felt daily by so many people in our country. We stand united, joining together with people around the world, to declare that Black lives matter. We believe that all humans are created by God as equal. As we are members together of one race, the human race, racism of any kind is evil.
TLG as an organisation, and myself as a leader, are committed to listening and learning, praying and acting to work towards a world where racism has been eradicated from all our structures and relationships. We have resolved to act, both internally and externally, and we are currently on a journey of change.
TLG places great importance on unity, equity, diversity and inclusion. Believing that there can be no place for racism in our society, we are galvanised to play our part in addressing the engrained inequalities, biases and racial prejudices that continue to exist. These issues directly affect so many of the young people we serve across our programmes. TLG is in a unique position to provide support and advocacy, whilst helping the next generation understand the issues and consider their response. As an organisation we have a voice in the corridors of power and together in partnership with local churches, an opportunity to affect UK wide, lasting change.
For example, we are currently working with the New Testament Church of God and other organisations in campaigning for the school curriculum to fully reflect today’s multi-cultural society. We also have a separate piece of work underway to upskill all of our Education Centre teams to teach racial justice and a more extensive understanding of the history and contribution of Black people to the UK.
We are encouraged by the opportunities to be part of the change needed in our society, whilst realising there is much further to go. We’re committed to playing our part and will keep you updated on our progress.
