Posts

Ten ways that you could develop confidence to address racism

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Dr Louise Taylor (Bunce), Principal Lecturer Student Experience, Oxford Brookes University Louise.E.Taylor@brookes.ac.uk Please note: This post is written from my perspective as a white woman, who was born and lives in the UK. There has been an extraordinary level of media coverage over the last year of issues relating to race and racism, both in the UK and the USA. This reflects the heightened level of awareness and outrage that many of us have had, and continue to have, over the mistreatment of Black* people and the disadvantages they face in a predominantly white society. From the unnecessary death of George Floyd caused by police officers, to the disproportionate impact of Covid-19, to the royal racism scandal, Black people continue to be underserved and discriminated against by our inherently racist social structures and institutions. Despite this, there is comparatively less written about how we might start to change our attitudes and behaviour in order to redress these imbal...

Antisemitism in British Football

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 This blog will be discussing my current research project, which focuses on antisemitism in British football. I began researching antisemitism in sport when undertaking my undergraduate studies, I became interested in the topic when my family members were discussing the anti-Semitic abuse Tottenham Hotspurs , also known as Spurs, receive. I hope that this project will encourage the conversation on antisemitism and will make individuals more aware of its prevalence within the football field, and in society more broadly. Antisemitism is a global issue, with 26% of the world’s population admitting they harbour anti-Semitic views . In short, antisemitism is the suspicion, dislike or hatred of Jewish individuals or groups.   Antisemitism can include, but is not limited to, claims that Jews are too powerful, too rich and part of the capitalist oppressor class. It also includes myths,   conspiracies and/or claims that Jews control the media, economy, government or other societ...

Exploring Two Generations of Athletes on Their Attitudes Towards Homosexuality and Bisexuality

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Blog by Connor Humphries, MPhil Student Sport has historically been utilised as a tool to promote masculinity and heterosexuality in effeminate boys. During the industrial revolution boys' primary socialisation was through their mother as men had to worth long hours in the factory to support the family. There was little understanding of homosexuality and it was thought to occur in individuals that were gender a-typical. Sport tackled this issue by teaching young men and boys to express socially accepted masculine characteristics such as aggression, bravery, stoicism, misogyny, and homophobia. After the industrial revolution, sport was still used to masculinise boys and men in society. Certain sports (invasion and contact sports) were also seen as masculine terrains and the athletes were therefore perceived as heterosexual. Female athletes participating in these ‘masculine sports’ had their sexuality questioned and were often labelled as a lesbian. During the 1980s society becam...

International Women's Day- Professor Simonetta Manfredi

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This content has been taken from an original interview with the Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce Group. Simonetta Manfredi Professor of Equality and Diversity Management and Associate Dean for Research and Knowledge Exchange (KE), Oxford Brookes University Business School  What would you highlight as the key accomplishments in your career, including accreditations and awards?  “In my role as Associate Dean I am responsible for setting the School research and Knowledge Exchange strategy and an important achievement for me has been to support my colleagues in delivering world-leading research to benefit individuals, the economy and society. In 2004 I founded the Centre for Diversity Policy Research and Practice and directed it until 2018. The Centre brings together academics, professionals, and policy makers to advance equality through research and evidence-based interventions. My interests span equality issues in the workplace with a focus on gender and age. I have published e...

Researching for equality under lockdown: Problems and possibilities in virtual approaches

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  A summary of the event by  Michele Paule The Inclusion, Diversity and Gender Network has concern for equalities at its heart. Many of us research human subjects who are vulnerable and/or marginalised, within complex institutional, domestic and cultural situations. The curtailment of in-person, face-to-face research activities presents us with a range of challenges in terms of access to participants, appropriate platforms, digital inequalities, quality of data and researcher-participant relationship. Following conversations arising as a result of the IDGN launch event where some participants had shared dilemmas they were facing in researching in lockdown, Michele Paule (one of the Network leads for the IDGN network) and Hannah Yelin (co-lead for the Creative Industries network) decided to offer a conversational workshop where we could discuss issues and how we were tackling them. We also wanted to facilitate sharing of experiences of online methods and helpful resources. ...