At Rape Crisis England & Wales, we are committed to intersectional feminism, anti-racism and anti-oppression. We aim to model and embody these values and make sure they underpin all our work.
We know that racism exists in our movement and in the violence against women and girls (VAWG) sector, as it does in wider society. We are very aware that the issue of racism in our sector is not limited to one organisation or group. Instead, it is widespread and insidious; it is also systemic and takes many different forms. And, just as sexual violence and misogyny are a continuum, we also know that racist violence is too.
We want to identify, challenge and eliminate racism, bullying and structural inequalities. To do this, we are working to focus on anti-racism and anti-oppression throughout our working practices and culture.
As individuals, as a team, and as a movement, we are all responsible for how we model and embody anti-racist feminist values. We know that developing our practices and culture requires a collective effort. We all must take part in this work.
We also know that we need to look to our own organisation before we can have a positive impact on our member centres. In the first instance, we have created an action plan for how we develop and embed anti-racist, intersectional working across Rape Crisis England & Wales. Our Anti-Racism Lead post supports us with these ambitions, but the strategic direction of this work sits with the senior management team, led by our CEO.