Press Release

17 August 2020

EMBARGOED 00:01 17 AUGUST 2020

FEMINIST LEADERSHIP GROUP SHEDS LIGHT ON THE CHALLENGES FACED BY BAME WOMEN IN SCOTLAND 

A feminist leadership group based in Scotland have published a series of blogs from BAME women in Scotland, highlighting the challenges and inequalities many black and ethnic minority women are facing.

The blogs are written by members of the Feel Good Women’s Group in Govanhill, the Ubuntu Women Shelter, members of the Young Women’s Movement in Scotland and Zero Tolerance. They discuss a variety of issues including community activism, the impact of the policy of no recourse to public funds, personal experiences of racism and sexism and the links between anti-racism work and prevention of violence against women.

The publication of the blogs is part of a social action project undertaken by the feminist leadership group. The group was formed in Glasgow in February 2020 at a Feminist Leadership course organised by the Women’s Resource Centre (WRC). The group continued to meet virtually over lockdown to deliver the project, seeking to highlight the voices of BAME women and their experiences.  

Aleisha Omeike, 19,  said: “ I chose to get involved with this project with the Women's Resource Centre because as a woman of colour, I understand how pressing this issue is. Being a BAME woman in Scotland comes with setbacks that others don't have to face. I only came to realise this in recent years, when I was told at one of my first ever job interviews that my natural hair looked unprofessional. Since my awakening I've made it my mission to make other people aware of the unconscious bias and the systemic racism and sexism that penetrates Scottish institutions. Therefore, I feel honoured to be part of the Spotlight Campaign which is helping highlight these issues and doing so in an excellent way; by giving BAME women the platform they deserve. “

Lauryn Omeike. 19, said: “I got involved with this project as it seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to do something I've wanted to do for a very very long time and that is, reach out to young girls who may feel insecure about their skin colour just like I did. I've made it my mission to help girls who may feel out of place and alone due to racism to feel beautiful as they are, to embrace their culture.” 

The WRC is the leading national umbrella organisation for the women’s sector. It strives to give voice to the most marginalised and disadvantaged organisations and is working towards transformational and substantive equality for women. 

You can visit https://www.wrc.org.uk/feminist-spotlight-campaign to find out more about the group and to read the blogs. 

- ENDS –

Attached is an image of the Feminist Leadership group during the training in Glasgow and facilitators. Attached is also the campaign graphic.

  

For further information, please contact Nicoletta Primo at [email protected].

Notes to editors:

About WRC

WRC is the leading national umbrella organisation for the women’s sector. WRC strives to give voice to the most marginalised and disadvantaged organisations and is working towards transformational and substantive equality for women. We understand women’s inequality to be both structural and systemic and we push for empowerment in its true sense by supporting women and women’s organisations to achieve their full potential.

Blog contributors: Aleisha Omeike, Lauryn Omeike, Sumac Antezana, Rizwana Saeed, Zero Tolerance 

About the Feminist Leadership group

We are a group of women brought together by a Feminist Leadership programme organised by Women’s Resource Centre (WRC). We are working in national, local and grassroots organisations across Scotland that focus on empowering women and girls, ending gender-based violence and achieving a more equal and just society. We represent the following organisations and projects:

• Zero Tolerance - Jo Zawadzka and Saffron Roberts
• The Feel Good Women’s Group (Glasgow) - Rizwana Saeed 
• Girlguiding Scotland - Nicoletta Primo
• The STAR Centre (Ayrshire’s Rape Crisis Centre) - Niamh Kerr 
• Rape Crisis Scotland and the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre - Natalia Equihua 
• Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis Centre - Paula Manners 
• Maria Soledad Montanez -Feministas Hispanoparlantes en Glasgow (a Spanish-speaking Feminist Collective in Glasgow)