Black History Month Special - Bogus British Values and Rivers of Blood

As a teacher, I came across a young mixed heritage student who pointed out to me an A5 black and white poster stuck on an empty white wall advertising Black History Month. A conversation began around ‘Black Lives Matter’ and a white student groaned, waved his hands around animatedly and said, ‘For God’s sake, all lives matter!’ These eleven years olds demonstrate the effect of the continual divisive misinformation that is taught to our children at school through The National Curriculum.

The idea of ‘British Values’ the former Prime Minster Boris Johnson supported reeked of hypocrisy as the students I come across on a daily basis do not and are not taught these ‘values’ spelt out in the Ofsted report.

According to Ofsted, 'Fundamental British Values' comprises ‘individual liberty’ and ‘mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs, and for those without faith.’ And yet the students, years after it was implemented, scoff at efforts by others to create an equal environment by marching and demonstrating. Their intolerance of others is embedded deep within their psyche and coated with an ignorance and arrogance of false entitlement. They are unaware of Black Georgians, and Black Victorians. Black Romans and the pseudo science developed on the tails of the Enlightenment period. (Science to justify racial descrimination.)

There is a lack of knowledge on the presence of black people in Britain since the 12th Century. (British History) and there is still the underlying attitude that Britishness equates to whiteness.

This disinterest in the black community and a separation of what is considered ‘black issues’ goes all the way to Parliament.

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for yet another Anti Racist Commission (Gov.UK) that David Lammy famously pointed out, was a way of placating the black British community. The action that is much needed, it appears, is not going to happen. Lord Woolley, like Lammy implied, has accused Boris Johnson of not wanting a ‘meaningful change.’ He continues that there are ‘no initiatives to tackle the deep inequalities black people face and questioned whether [Johnson’s] new aides even believe they exist.’ (The Independent) to which many of us in the black community are not surprised. For being British, has been divided into black and white. Just like History has been divided into black and white. The white in power are not interested in issues which they consider as ‘’black’ and therefore have no plans to do anything to change.

Liz Truss, now in power with her multicultural cabinet, has the power to do something different. One wonderes if she will make real change for multicultural Britain, or if, like Ofsted's ideas of British Values and Johnson's attitude to making 'meaningful change,' she and her cabinet are simply window dressing to placacte the people and to appear as if they are doing things differently. When really, they are more of the same white Conservative control.

History taught at school is fragmented. Yet ‘History’ implies a complete and accurate record. Nevertheless it is rolled out to students in primary and secondary schools, who grow up into adults without a truthful understanding of the history of Britain and what it means to be British - ignorant that the first Englishman had black skin. Ignorant that black people helped build this country - from money from slavery, scientific contributions as well as inventions. From writers to scholars, to black British intellectuals. (The Guardian.) History taught at school leaves out any contribution of any person of colour. And so what is left is White History under the illusion that it is a complete and accurate History.

This has left the black community rallying for a change. Exasperated at non action, and the continual abuse of black bodies through microaggressions in everyday lives to black people being imprisoned, killed and misrepresented in every level of society. Sparked by the murder of