Black History Month 2025: Standing Firm in Power and Pride

Ahead of Prospect’s Black History Month webinar on 28 October, long-standing activist Alan Gooden, along with NEC members Freddie Brown, Christine Danniell and Satnam Ner reflect on this year’s theme: “Standing Firm in Power and Pride”.

Standing Firm

When it comes to matters of race equality few would argue that the current political climate is probably more polarised than it has ever been. At home and internationally, the rise of the far right is evident and along with this comes the need to counter the kind of divisive and toxic narrative that can make communities and workplaces dangerous for our Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) workers and their families. But we are not going anywhere. Because as much as anyone else we belong here.

The way we stand firm is by supporting each other and galvanising our movement and our allies. We need to do this locally within our workplaces and also nationally through our political influence. Either as a standalone trade union or as a key affiliate of the Trades Union Congress (TUC). With close to 5.5 million affiliated members, political parties are rightly desperate to secure the support of trade unions, and we must ensure that any support we give for any policy or initiative does not pander to populism but rather is conditional on dealing with the real issues we face. Part and parcel of this is to tell the real stories based on real facts and bust the misinformation, myths and downright lies – particularly on matters of asylum, race and immigration. In conjunction with this, it makes sense to mobilise alongside anti-racism campaigning organisations such as Hope not Hate, of which Prospect has been a longstanding supporter.

Stand firm with us. At Prospect Head Office in London, there is a Black History Month montage. If you happen to be visiting during October, please take a few moments to see this in its entirety.

Pride matters

In the true spirit of trade union solidarity, all Prospect members and in fact the entire trade union movement, have a critical role during Black History Month. Everyone needs to hear and share the stories that are told, and everyone needs to share in the collective pride. That’s why we want to stress that like Black History Month, our webinar is not just for our colleagues who identify as Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic, but for everyone.

Whilst we might be deceived by Reform rhetoric to think that the St George’s flag campaigns we have seen since the summer are the preserve of largely white “indigenous” Britons, they do not speak to the real modern Britain. Not in values, nor in demographic. We know Black History Month should not be needed to tell our real stories, but the month is there to fill a void and give a focus. So we must use it as an opportunity to challenge hatefulness and proudly showcase Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic contribution.

Here are just one or two of those stories. Did you know that during WW1, there were 1.5 million soldiers from the Indian Subcontinent? And that this grew to 2.5 million in WW2? By 1945 the British Indian Army was the largest volunteer army in history. With Islamophobia on the rise, it makes it particularly shameful and downright disrespectful, that from all those who served in the Allied Forces, nearly 1.5 million Muslims were killed in action across the two World Wars. Historians note that it was impossible for the UK to win the war without the Indian Army. At the start of WW2, the Royal Air Force was the first to lift the colour bar and thousands of men and women from the Caribbean served as pilots and ground crew. Stories from the period after the war are perhaps better known but still warrant telling.

During the period from 1948 and 1971, the Windrush generation and Commonwealth citizens from elsewhere around the globe, came to Britain, by invitation, to fill labour shortages and rebuild a country ravaged by war. So, the histories of today’s white and black Britons are shared, and inseparably entwined. Stand in pride with us.

Power matters

We know that black workers need trade unions, to represent them and to bargain for them. But equally, trade unions need black workers – they need both the collective and individual leadership that black workers bring, that will enable delivery of our objectives. This reminds me of a quote by Alice Walker who said, “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.”  Black History Month is a great opportunity to reframe our thinking and use the power we all have.

In the trade union movement and through our affiliation with the TUC we have seen outstanding Black trade union leaders serve alongside Prospect’s own General Secretaries – Sir Bill Morris (Transport and General Workers Union), more recently Dr Patrick Roach (National association of Schoolmasters and Women Teachers) and currently Gloria Mills (Unison). Inspirational influencers.

Closer to home, within Prospect we have dozens of workplace reps who identify as BAME. They are our embedded leaders with a critical role in helping to galvanise worker power. Like all reps they selflessly serve. This Black History Month, reach out and have a conversation. I’m sure they will be only too willing to share their history, which is also your history.

And remember to register for the Prospect Black History Month webinar on 28 October.