Stroud Against Racism calls on Local Election Candidates to take a stand against prejudice and Discrimination
Stroud Against Racism is a community movement of around 2,850 members based all around Stroud and carrying forward the message of the Black Lives Matter movement that erupted in protest in 2020 after the death of George Floyd at the hands of uniformed police in the United States.
Stroud Against Racism acknowledges that something must be done to confront and dismantle systemic racism in our cities, towns and villages, in our institutions and within our local politics.
We accept that confronting prejudice is no easy task, that cultural values, ideas and opinions are often deeply ingrained to the point of seeming uncontroversial and for any real change to take place a period of unlearning and deep introspection needs to happen. Challenging racism is not a tickbox exercise and often involves uncomfortable conversations that lead to an increased level of self-awareness.
The pledge we have written has been put together in good faith; it can only really be enforced by the person that signs up to it. It is not limited to those Councillors who will be elected to the district council, anyone - candidate or councillor, agent or activist - working in local politics at Parish, Town, District and County is invited to take up the pledge, whether or not they are ultimately elected.
All we ask of those that sign it is that they make a commitment to going on that journey of unlearning and learning, of confronting racism wherever they encounter it and of being standard-bearers for inclusion, advocacy and positive change for all communities in our local government.
May 6 will bring with it wide-ranging changes across all of our local institutions, when all-out elections take place at Parish & Town, District and County levels and even the Police & Crime Commissioner. This marks a huge opportunity for candidates and public servants to take a stand and say No to systemic racism.
We are calling upon all candidates to sign up to our simple pledge and to commit to the hard work of unpicking and unpacking prejudice within their ranks, their parties, their colleagues and themselves.
You can find out more about Stroud Against Racism and join the group by searching for us on Facebook.
Robin LAYFIELD, Labour and Co-operative candidate says:
"I am happy to sign up to this pledge and commit to doing my bit if elected to District Council to make our district fairer, more inclusive and more representative for all of our communities."
Eva WARD, Green County Councillor
"This is essential and all candidates need to sign up to this pledge before they are elected. Every prospective councillor must sign up to this. If they don't, how could you possibly vote for them? It is absolutely the right thing to do"
Please send this to your local candidates and ask them to sign and show their commitment to fighting racism within themselves and their parties and the institutions they may go on to represent.
Post by Eleanor Polly Healey, founder or Stroud Against Racism.