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Fata He – Unity meetings

BNG — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 22:52:14 +0000

Meeting Dates for Unity Plymouth at the Council House. www.unityplymouth.co.uk

26^th June 2010

31^st July 2010

21^st August 2010

25^th Setember 2010

30^th October 2010

27^th November 2010

18^th December 2010

Representatives/ Councillors are invited from various organisations. If you have an issue and would like it to be addressed then please tell us

Please feel free to attend. Bring your family and friends. All meetings are FREE to all members of the Communities.

Recreational facilities for children are provided.

Cultural food is provided FREE by volunteers.

Venue- Council House next to Civic centre, City Centre Plymouth. All Meetings are 1.00-5.00pm.

If you need further information please call:

Ikenna 07868834898

Chaz 07950957909

WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU!

The Black Jacobins by CLR James – a review for discussion

BNG — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 16:56:36 +0000

Pierre Dominique Toussaint L-Overature was a gifted military leader and law giver who transformed a slave revolt in the French sugar colony of San Domingo into a revolutionary movement resulting in the creation of the Republic of Haiti in 1803. The slave revolt in France’s most lucrative colony began in 1791 when news of the French Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man began to reach the Caribbean Islands. The Black slaves of African ancestry at San Domingo believed that the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity applied to them as much as to any White European. Toussaint L-Overature was drawn to this liberation stuggle giving it military discipline and constitutional articulation. Eventually the Black leader was captured by the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte, the General who sought to reinstitute Black slavery in France’s sugar islands. Toussaint L’Overature died of exposure in a jail in the French Alps in 1802. Nevertheless the movement he led was sufficiently effective to create Haiti, the second republic of the Americas. The leadership of Toussaint L’Overature in guiding his people away from slavery helped inspire many engaged in the struggle to oppose imperialism and oppression of all kinds. In 1938 the Trinidadian activist C.L. R. James helped explain Toussaint L’Overature’s accomplishments in his classic text, The Black Jacobins: Toussaint L’Overature and the San Domingo Revolution.

Fata He

BNG — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 22:47:21 +0000

FATA HE is a West African word which means ‘Inclusion’ and was established in 2001 to redress social and economic inequalities relating to Black and Minority Ethnic (B&ME) individuals, families and groups within the city of Plymouth. Since becoming incorporated as a Limited Company (Social Enterprise) in 2003, Fata He has become an umbrella organisation for other B&ME individuals and groups, and works closely with other local, sub-regional and regional organisations.

Since the dissolution of the Plymouth Anti Racism Task Force (ARTF) in April 2004 Fata He have continued to support a number of individuals and groups who deliver services to B&ME communities including the Plymouth Gypsy community.

As the recognised sub-regional B&ME infrastructure hub for Devon, Cornwall, Plymouth and Torbay, Fata He with its partner B&ME organisations represents the B&ME Home Office funded Change Up infrastructure body in this sub region. Fata He received a small amount of funding in 2005 from the Change Up Early Spend programme to develop its capacity to take up position as lead B&ME organisation for the sub region.

The role of Fata He as lead B&ME sub regional infrastructure hub will be to:

Work closely with mainstream organisations to develop best practice and act in a supporting and advisory capacity in improving service access and provision for its excluded beneficiaries

Provide organisational development support to B&ME voluntary, community and business sector groups to help them grow and nurture their long term development

Develop a range of specialist provision through 4 sub regional locally based Forums and a sub regional representative Forum which meets the needs of B&ME people throughout the sub regional area.

Fata He plan to develop their services to fill identified gaps in the market. In essence we will develop a niche market of specialist services to add value to existing provision in the sub region. In order to make Fata He sustainable in the longer term, strands of delivery will be developed under four key areas:

B&ME Capacity Building

B&ME Social Enterprise Development

Asset Management

Consultancy and Training

In addition to the above and as previously highlighted we will develop, support and facilitate a sub regional infrastructure representative B&ME hub through the establishment of four local B&ME Forums in which Fata He will facilitate the exchange of information, provide networking and development opportunities for individuals and the Forum as a whole.

Our Vision is to
‘Build a sustainable, vibrant and cohesive B&ME voluntary and community sector in Devon, Cornwall, Plymouth and Torbay through a number of strong, innovative, proactive and representational B&ME Forums and a sub regional infrastructure hub’

Through a facilitating and supportive approach enable the B&ME voluntary and community sector to play its full part in the delivery of local projects and services, participate in the local implementation of social and economic regeneration strategies and also to tackle in partnership the problems of social exclusion in B&ME communities.

Equal Opportunities Statement

Introduction

Fata he believes in equal opportunities for all people in our community and we try and put our policy into practice in everything we do. We aim to deal fairly, openly and honestly with people applying for jobs, our Directors, employees, and clients who use our services.

Fata He was created to help change the previous lack of opportunities for people in our area to benefit from and to participate in the social and economic regeneration of the area. We are particularly dedicated to ensuring that all sections of the community are able to participate in and benefit from Fata He activities and we take care to ensure that there are no hidden barriers which might prevent this.

Fata He also understands that because everyone is different, there is a need for its workforce and client base to reflect and be representative of the community it serves. We are dedicated to enabling people to access the jobs and economic improvements which we might help to create and support in our business and in all our activities, either in our sole name or in partnership with others.

Aims

As a community based social enterprise organisation, any black or ethnic minority individual living in, having a business in, or being a community organisation in our catchment area, can become upon invitation a director of our Management Board, entitled to attend meetings and vote, and to help in our activities.

Fata He is a social enterprise established to benefit black and ethnic minority groups, business, families, and individuals although no one from the wider community would be excluded. We are committed to helping with the social and economic regeneration of our area and the wider areas of the city, and actively attempt to improve opportunities for all people so that they can participate in all Fata He activities. We aim to improve the social, economic, health, quality of life and opportunities for all people in our community.

Fata He will not unfairly discriminate (directly or indirectly) against anyone because of, for example their race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, sex, sexuality, age, ability or disability, education, literacy, religion (or non-religion), political activity, trade union activity, marital status, domestic situations, being HIV positive, and whether people are in or applying for full-time, part-time or job share work. (These are examples only. Other forms of discrimination will be tackled whenever they.

http://www.fatahe.com/index.aspx

Do Racist Attitudes Hinder Mothers of Mixed-Race Children?

BNG — Wed, 05 May 2010 11:11:17 +0000

Professor Ravinder Barn and Dr Vicki Harman from the Centre for Criminology and Sociology at Royal Holloway, University of London are carrying out research into white mothers of mixed-race children. It is part of a wider study of mixed-race children and young people that has spanned more than two decades. See more at:-

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100428121600.htm

With Thanks to:-
University of Royal Holloway London (2010, April 28). Do racist attitudes hinder mothers of mixed-race children?. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 5, 2010, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2010/04/100428121600.htm

Stephen Lawrence 10 years after

BNG — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 22:22:14 +0000

Black Presence

BNG — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 01:41:42 +0000

The Black Presence website was formerly the Black Presence in Britain, history site about the contribution of African descended people in British history.

The Black Presence in Britain website was set up in 1998 due to a lack of information about Black people in Britain to be found on the Internet.

I was studying politics at the time, the course included a history module called; ” The black Presence in Britain 1550-present day”.

Whilst doing my research I found a serious lack of Black British info online. So, I decided to build my own site where this information could be documented. The site has had many incarnations since then. ?I built the first version of it using Netscape composer, later moving on to Dreamweaver. Today the site uses comtent management software.

http://www.blackpresence.co.uk/

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans History Month

BNG — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 21:57:48 +0000

Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans History Month takes place every year in February. It celebrates the lives and achievements of the LGBT community. We are committed to celebrate its diversity and that of the society as a whole. We encourage everyone to see diversity and cultural pluralism as the positive forces that they are and endeavour to reflect this in all we do.

http://www.lgbthistorymonth.org.uk/

Black Mental Health UK

BNG — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 21:59:19 +0000

About us

Black Mental Health UK (BMH UK) was established in 2006 to raise awareness and address the stigma associated with mental illness.

The aim of our work is to see a reduction in the inequalities in the treatment and care of people from African Caribbean communities who use mental health services, and to inform these communities on how to influence the strategic development, policy design and implementation of services.

BMH UK’s focus is on empowering African Caribbean communities to improve the Black service user experience and reduce the over representation of Black people at the coercive end of psychiatric care.

Please note
The Black Mental Health UK does not provide help, treatment, counselling, care service or advice for those in crisis. We are not able to discuss individual cases.

http://www.blackmentalhealth.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=22&Itemid=56

The scandal of ‘criminalising’ mental health patients

BNG — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 21:37:18 +0000

Community and faith groups condemn the rapid rise in prisoner suicide rates

Tuesday 2 January 2008

Human rights group Black Mental Health UK have added their voice to the growing numbers of community and faith organisation who have condemned the rapid rise in the numbers of suicides of people in prison over the last 12 months.

Government statistics indicate that black prisoners are currently in the system at a rate that is five times higher than that of white prisoners; this has led to fears that these latest stats will hit the black community hardest.

‘Clearly there are concerns about this and we need to have an ethnic breakdown of exactly who has died in prison in the last 12 months in order to establish current trends.

One suicide is one to many and we have seen figures on the over representation of ethnic minorities within prison settings but not been given any answers as to why this is not being addressed’ Lord Herman Ouseley, former head of the Chairman of the Commission For Racial Equality said.

The Ministry of Justice announcement has revealed that 93 people lost their lives last year and comes in tandem with a statement from The HLPR (Howard League for Penal Reform) which shows that 45 percent of those who died were either being held on remand, unsentenced or awaiting sentence after conviction.

‘It is disturbing to see that half of the people who have lost their lives in these institutions were not actually convicted of any crime but rather were on remand or awaiting sentencing,’ Rev Paul Grey, New Testament Church of God, Nuneatun branch said.

Penal reformers blamed overcrowding for the increase in deaths. HM Inspectorate of Prisons thematic review of mental health published last October showed staffing levels in prison mental health care are just one-third of what is needed with the majority of prisoners with mental health problems getting inadequate care and are being released with the same, or worse, problems.

‘It is not conducive to anyone’s mental well being to be behind bars, human potential was never meant to be locked away it was meant to released. The current models that are being used are flawed, if they weren’t’ then people staying in the system would not be dying,’ Rev Paul Grey, New Testament Church of God, Nuneatun said.

BMH UK have welcomed prisons minister Maria Eagle call for an inquiry into the reasons behind the increase, to look into measures to improve security for those suffering from mental health problems. ‘An inquiry is welcomed and urgently needed, what we must ensure is that there is appropriate and equal representation of all stakeholders, especially from communities group most adversely effected by this.

It is horrifying to think that there has been at least one death every week in 2007 in prison settings. We need an ethnic breakdown of these figures to gauge the extent of the problem so we can establish effective strategies to ensure that these figures come down.’ Matilda MacAttram director of Black Mental Health UK said.

For interviews please call M: 07852 182 750

Notes to the editor

* Black Mental Health UK is a human rights campaigns group established to address the over representation of African Caribbean’s within secure psychiatric care and raise awareness to address the stigma associated with mental health.

* African Caribbean’s are 44% more likely to be sectioned, 29% more likely to be forcibly restrained, 50% more likely to be placed in seclusion and make up 30% of in patients on medium secure psychiatric wards despite having similar rates of mental illness as British white people.

* African Caribbean’s make up 14% of the prison population but are less than 3% of the national population.

The Forum for Preventing Deaths in Custody report was published in September 2007

http://www.politics.co.uk/press-releases/bmhuk-community-and-faith-groups-condemn-rapid-rise-in-prisoner-suicide-rates-$483681.htm

The Intercom Trust

BNG — Thu, 21 May 2009 23:07:44 +0000

Intercom began in the summer of 1997, when eight LGB people started meeting in Exeter to discuss our worries about gaps in local services for LGB people and Trans people. There was a need for advocacy for people who encountered homophobic crime, prejudice or discrimination; there was a dreadful lack of community-led social and support groups for all ages and genders, especially in the rural areas; no-one was providing resources for schools, or campaigning for the needs of young LGB people; no-one was available to work with local government, health, or the business sector to reduce discrimination and provide vital awareness-training for staff and policy-makers.

http://www.intercomtrust.org.uk/portal.htm