Sussex Anti-Racist Action (SARA) Manifesto

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Foreword Key Demands Pay and Awarding Gaps Decolonising the curriculum Resisting the Hostile Environment Eliminate Prevent Community and Radical Care

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Cover Art - by Yazz James Artwork on page 10 - ‘Pay and Awarding Gaps’ by Nim Gill Artwork on page 15 - ‘Decolonise the Curriculum’ by Zoe Thompson Artwork on page 20- ‘Resisting the Hostile Environment’ by Iman-Essayo Dekonor Artwork on page 24 - ‘Eliminate Prevent’ by Simi Supra Artwork on page 30 - ‘Community and Radical Care’ by Khadija Hossain Published online December 2020 University of Sussex Students’ Union

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Sussex Anti-Racist Action is a collective of students, staff and members of the community including your sabbatical officers, trade unions, campaign groups and societies who want to build an anti-racist Sussex. We are building a coalition of staff, students and the wider Sussex community to tackle institutional racism at the University of Sussex.

Over a series of forums and feed-in sessions we collectively created a manifesto that represents what an anti-racist Sussex means to us. Our policies aim to dismantle institutional racism and redress the harm that years of racism has had on staff, students and the wider community.

This manifesto will not only serve to highlight the changes that Sussex so desperately needs but also to guide our work and efforts as a collective.

We would like to thank everyone who attended one of our sessions and gave their thoughts, ideas and feedback to create this manifesto. We would also like to thank the talented artists who created the artwork that is featured and the Students’ Union for helping with events and promotion.

We would also like to take this moment to thank all of those people, past and present who have been involved in this crucial and important work - which far too often goes unrecognised.

Our work is always evolving to meet the needs of staff, students and the community. If you have feedback on our manifesto you can submit it here: bit.ly/SARAfeedback

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Pay and Awarding Gaps 1. The establishment of a Centre for Anti-Racist Studies within the University, giving scholarly opportunities to students and academics from BAME backgrounds 2. Continued funding of the Sussex Race Equity Advocates programme, to be based in the Students’ Union to enable ongoing independent critique of the University’s structures.

3. All BAME staff should have salary normalised with at least the median for white staff in the same pay band 4. Holistic review of assessment methods and their impact on students based on their race/ethnicity 5. University-funded PhD studentships for BAME students and a subset specifically for Black students 6. Extensive pre-term academic induction for international students: a month to cover language and cultural differences, a further month to cover academic bases e.g. statistics, mathematics for relevant courses, plagiarism, and other rules around academic life.

Decolonising the curriculum 1. Fund independently managed and properly trained co-producing work. Students need support to build their skills and confidence to participate on an equal footing with staff.

2. Prolonged, mandatory and continual training for academic and support staff, as well as practical handbook/training for staff on how to decolonise the curriculum. Staff are overworked and need to be supported to do this work well.

3. Compensate and incentivise diversity work: give EDI committees facilities time, build race equity concerns into performance reviews, and proper (external to the University) management and support for students engaging in this work, to build their confidence and properly resource and empower them to speak as freely as possible.

4. Actual consequences for staff (and students) who are racist. Better reporting tools and management of reports. Some accountability for senior managers whose departments and Schools fail to narrow the Awarding Gap. 5. Better hiring processes for academic and support staff at Sussex: ensuring that 6

external specialists are brought in to diversify hiring panels. During the hiring process, we should test for individual’s knowledge on race theory, how they would attempt to close the Awarding Gap, their stance on anti-racism, etc. as core concerns for Sussex staff.

6. Networking opportunities aimed at BAME students. Fund the running of BAME staff and student networks, as well.

Resisting the Hostile Environment 1. Support for a fee amnesty for international students 2. No bodycams! stop the expansion in cyber security on campus.

3. Provide specific pastoral care and legal support for staff and students that are experiencing immigration and visa problems 4. Introduce an ‘immigration reimbursement’ policy that commits the University to cover the costs associated with work visas (including ILR and the NHS surcharge) for employees and their dependents.

5. Easily accessible and communicated reporting tools for incidents of racism and discrimination. Clear guidance about what will happen next.

6. Mandatory anti-racism and active bystander training for students (including white/ home students)

Eliminate Prevent 1. The University to remove the discriminatory Prevent duty across all its policies, structures and spaces by creating a student and community-led interpretation of the government’s ‘due regard’ framework on Prevent.

2. The University to be transparent about the covert and overt existence of Prevent in all its various structures, policies, systems and processes.

3. The University to be transparent about and seek to end partnerships with structures and organisations it works with in relation to Prevent.

4. The University to admit that the Prevent program in all its shapes and forms (both overt and covert) is racist and Islamophobic.

Community and Radical Care 1. Hire more counsellors and support staff in all student experience offices who identify from a Black, Asian or Ethnic Minority background, have lived experience of racism and have training around providing support for students of colour.

2. Review and improve the support available to students and staff who experience racist abuse, including but not limited to: 7

3. Compassionate leave for staff 4. Inclusion of racism within extenuating circumstances for assessments 5. Counselling provided by facilitators who specialise in dealing with the impacts of racism on mental health 6. Work closely with local residents and community members to ensure a healthy and supportive relationship between the University and the community 7. Create and host a series of free or heavily subsidised educational workshops and classes for local residents and community members from marginalised communities 8. Invite residents and community members to hear their thoughts and ideas about how to build a more anti-racist Sussex and Brighton community 9. Work with local authorities and organisations to undergo anti-racism training and reduce racist incidents within the Brighton and Sussex area. Including but not limited to the Council, the Police, B&H buses, local nightclubs and bars.

10. Lobby against the disproportionate stop and search rates for people of colour in Sussex

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For staff and students at the University of Sussex, race is a huge determining factor in degree awarding, progression, and pay.

The University of Sussex first published its awarding gap data on the 24th of September 2019 after months of organising pressure from students and staff. It was acknowledged that the University awarding gap for UK domiciled Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students stood at 14.3% and for Black students specifically at 26%; both are above the sector average.

Pressure to acknowledge these data also came from higher education regulatory agencies such as the Office for Students (OfS). The OfS have set a sector wide target to ‘eliminate the unexplained gap in degree outcomes (1sts or 2:1s) between white students and black students by 2024-25, and to eliminate the gap entirely by 2030-31’.

In a recent report by AdvanceHE it was suggested that at the current pace of closure, it would likely take another 66 years to eliminate the awarding gap between white and Black students. Given the fact that this gap at Sussex is wider than the sector average, its seems reasonable to fear that it might take even longer than 66 years to achieve that equality in degree awarding for Black students here at Sussex.

In the statement in which the University gave an overview of Sussex data, they said that they had shown their ‘commitment to progressing race equality and improving our campus by signing up to the Race Equality Charter (REC) so all feel safe, equal and included’. We do not believe that membership of the REC (whilst useful) is near sufficient to close these gaps, especially not by the OfS sector targets.

Sector wide research, as well as our own work with students and staff, has shown that there are a wide variety of contributing factors to the existence of these gaps.

Including but not limited to: poor representation among teaching and professional services staff; a Eurocentric curriculum; a lack of belonging on campus due to microaggressions and overt racism both in social and academic settings; a lack of institutional support and an overwhelming lack of desire and creativity to address the academic consequences of socioeconomic divides that often intersect with racial identity.

We believe that a catalogue of institution wide race equity and racial justice policies are needed to eliminate the racist gaps that exist at our University and we believe that we need a representative and anti-racist leadership to execute them. The University’s most senior committees are nearly, if not 100% white and have often had to be pushed to acknowledge matters of racial equity and justice. Black and brown students of Sussex are being failed now. They do not have the luxury of waiting for a handful of white executives to decide how much equality they are willing to dispense. If the 11

University is to continue to take thousands of pounds from these students then it must take action immediately.

Here, we have outlined a list of institution-wide policies compiled through collaboration with students and staff across the University. The policies are broadly broken down into academic and student support level interventions to close the awarding gap and staff level interventions which aim to eliminate the ethnicity pay and positional gaps at Sussex.

Key Demands: 1. The establishment of a Centre for Anti-Racist Studies within the University, giving scholarly opportunities to students and academics from BAME backgrounds 2. Continued funding of the Sussex Race Equity Advocates programme, to be based in the Students’ Union to enable ongoing independent critique of the University’s structures 3. All BAME staff should have salary normalised with at least the median for white staff in the same pay band 4. Holistic review of assessment methods and their impact on students based on their race/ethnicity 5. University-funded PhD studentships for BAME students and a subset specifically for Black students 6. Extensive pre-term academic induction for international students: a month to cover language and cultural differences, a further month to cover academic bases e.g. statistics, mathematics for relevant courses, plagiarism, and other rules around academic life.

Full list of suggested policies:

Awarding Gaps - Academic Level • University-funded PhD studentships for BAME students and a subset specifically for Black students • Continued funding of the Sussex Race Equity Advocates programme, to be based in the Students’ Union to enable independent critique of the University’s structures • Holistic review of assessment methods and their impact on students based on their race/ethnicity • Anonymous marking for all assessments • Annual review and scoring of race inclusivity levels for every module • Compulsory and assessed anti-racist material on every programme in every year • The establishment of a Centre for Anti-Racist Studies within the University, giving 12

scholarly opportunities to students and academics from BAME backgrounds • As a minimum, the ethnic makeup of academic staff should be representative of the student body.

• Continuous cultural understanding and anti-racist training made compulsory for staff who interact with students.

• Funding of Junior Research Associate positions specifically for BAME students • Extensive pre-term academic induction for international students: a month to cover language and cultural differences, a further month to cover academic bases e.g. statistics, mathematics for relevant courses, plagiarism, and other rules around academic life.

Awarding Gaps - Support Level • At a minimum, the ethnic makeup of support staff should be representative of the student body.

• Continuous cultural understanding and anti-racist training made compulsory for support staff who interact with students.

• The establishment of a support service specifically designed to meet the needs of BAME students.

• Ensuring that there is BAME student representation on decision-making committees • Full scale race equity impact assessment of any major decisions made regarding student life.

• Extensive pre-term support services induction for international students. Including specific administrative support with immigration and visas, applying for national insurance numbers and policies around tax etc.

• Employment support programmes for international students.

• Access to student support services should not be determined by fee status – the University should remove fee status barriers to all support services.

Pay Gaps • Formalising and rewarding the informal support work done by BAME staff in aid of BAME students.

• Race equity evaluation on every appraisal of staff, regardless of role or position.

• All BAME staff should have salary normalised with at least the median for white staff in the same pay band.

• Data regarding University promotions to have annual race equity impact assessment.

• Anonymising all job applications to the University.

• Race Equity recruitment provision into any ULT role or higher.

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Thinking about decolonising the University also asks us to think about what the University is for. Many students and academics may feel that they go to University in order to improve something, increase knowledge about something, or increase critical thinking and striving for some kind of ‘truth’. Maybe they want to amplify the stories and practices of groups which are not permitted to speak for themselves through the institution. But, as many in academia will admit, this search for ‘knowledge’ is less about seeking a single universal ‘truth’, and more about being aware of the multiple, competing knowledges that exist in the world and how what we think of as ‘knowledge’ or ‘truth’ is shaped by structures of power: by capitalism, imperialism, racism, sexism, concepts of ability and disability, and cisheteronormativity (among other things).

And who decides who gets to speak for themselves inside the institution? Who draws and polices the lines which delineate the University and who falls on each side (inside and outside) of it? Decolonising the institution isn’t just about calling that into question in our writing, it isn’t just about diversifying (or tokenising) our academic palate. It’s about acknowledging the systems and structures in place that exist to make things harder for BAME students - international and local - to have an equal footing with their white counterparts.

It’s about calling into question also the differential distribution of resources across society that enable these exclusions. When teachers think BAME students ‘just aren’t’ academic. The tuition fee system. Private schools. Stop and search. Racist policing more broadly. The white curriculum. Prevent. These are all part of the same process and decolonising is about turning them all on their head and imagining how the world could be different. Doing this doesn’t just benefit BAME/POC people. We all could do with a decentralised, less Western, less colonial narrative. Race, history, and politics are all part of the society we live in and key to understanding it. Academia (re-) produces those things, too.

Key Demands: 1. Fund independently managed and properly trained co-producing work. Students need support to build their skills and confidence to participate on an equal footing with staff.

2. Prolonged, mandatory and continual training for academic and support staff, as well 14

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as practical handbook/training for staff on how to decolonise the curriculum. Staff are overworked and need to be supported to do this work well.

3. Compensate and incentivise diversity work: give EDI committees facilities time, build race equity concerns into performance reviews, and proper (external to the University) management and support for students engaging in this work, to build their confidence and properly resource and empower them to speak as freely as possible.

4. Actual consequences for staff (and students) who are racist. Better reporting tools and management of reports. Some accountability for senior managers whose departments and Schools fail to narrow the Awarding Gap. 5. Better hiring processes for academic and support staff at Sussex: ensuring that external specialists are brought in to diversify hiring panels. During the hiring process, we should test for individual’s knowledge on race theory, how they would attempt to close the Awarding Gap, their stance on anti-racism, etc. as core concerns for Sussex staff.

6. Networking opportunities aimed at BAME students. Fund the running of BAME staff and student networks, as well.

Full list of suggested policies:

In the Classroom Compulsory modules that handle ethics and ‘race science’, and revisiting topics on ‘race’ and racism, imperialism, ableism and capitalism and how this has affected the discipline throughout a course of study, not just at the beginning.

Inclusive and international authors on reading lists - the best and most relevant literature doesn’t just come from one place. How could it? Reading should be focused on intersectionality, not tokenism here - and not a crude intersectional calculus, but in Crenshawe’s original sense: looking at the dynamics of gender and race and class and how these interact. Each of those intersections requires historicising and theorising in itself.

Trigger warnings and definitions: understanding that the classroom is a sensitive place which can reproduce power dynamics, usually at the expense of those who are already marginalised in society. Understand that people will be differently affected by discussions of things which they have personally experienced. Don’t just say the ‘N’ word if you’re not Black, even if you’re reading an old or racist document.

Mutual Understanding: to counteract the fear of speaking up and encourage sensitivity E.g. Practising mindfulness when observing diversity in the classroom (and the material being taught), especially when there is a distinct minority with different experiences.

In seminars, a common issue is that BAME students are used as speakers for certain race-based discussion topics; this is insensitive and taxing in various ways. Tutors 16

need to realise this and think of creative ways to share the burden of learning about these issues.

An example of how some of this work could be begun can be seen in the pilot of the Co-Producing the Curriculum project. The first cohort in 2019 sought to bring together students and faculty to discuss their curriculum through a series of workshops, where curriculum and assessment, pedagogy and relationships, institutional obstacles, and hiring practices were put on the table. These workshops created a sense of solidarity and actionables that would eventually amount to practical changes in the curriculum.

In these sessions, tutors and students participated, as far as possible, as equals, independent from the University, so their critique could be fairly independent.

Across the University Prolonged, mandatory and continual training for academic and support staff, as well as a practical handbook/training for staff on how to decolonise the curriculum. Staff are overworked and need to be supported to do this work well from the centre, with responsibility and resources devolved to departments to be implemented as staff, student reps, and Race Equity Advocates decide locally.

• Breaking it down - practical guide to decolonising your field of work • Similar to the BAME awarding gap toolkit, providing an extensive resource which is a compilation of guidance, reading materials, and things to look out for in class.

• For training, this should possibly be bi-monthly.

Compensate and incentivise diversity work: • To incentivise this work for staff and students + make sure that unpaid labour is no more when trying to address these things.

• Proper (external) management and support for students engaging in this work, to build their confidence and enable them to speak as freely as possible.

Actual consequences for staff (and students) who are racist. Some accountability for senior managers whose departments and Schools fail to narrow the Awarding Gap.

Hiring process: • There is a lack of BAME mentors and academics in general • Mentors; possibly providing ways to reach out to external mentors • Ensuring that external specialists are brought in to diversify hiring panels. The University was able to do this when hiring for a new BAME counsellor. It is possible.

• During the hiring process, there should be tests for the individual’s knowledge on race theory, how they would attempt to close the Awarding Gap, their stance on 17

anti-racism, etc. as core concerns for working at Sussex.

• Can also be included in their annual review • These concepts of impact should be broadened to include the above

Networking opportunities aimed at BAME students: • Such opportunities should include consideration of intersections with people’s other identities, such as LGBTQ+ BAME students for example.

• Highlighting scholarship opportunities that usually go unmissed cc: The Junior Research Associate program has a certain percentage aimed for BAME individuals, however it was badly promoted - only at the tail end of the JRA hiring period was there promotion of this.

A long-term aim of decolonising work should be dismantling the ivory tower of academia, which sees usually white or otherwise a small minority of ‘exceptional’ Black or other non-white academics writing about and ‘for’ the rest of us. We want access to the resources to create our own research and actually do practical things with it. The University should not participate so much in culturally reproducing the classed, raced system of capitalism, but in breaking those systems down.

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Migrants in the UK have faced an environment of hostility for a long time. However, it was in 2012 that then-Home Secretary, Theresa May, coined the phrase ‘hostile environment’ when speaking about her new approach to immigration. Following this, a wave of policies were introduced that turned regular citizens into law enforcers for the Home Office.

The Higher Education sector was one of the first to have immigration checks ‘outsourced’ to it by the British government. Since then, we have seen universities across the UK act as border agents when it comes to international staff and students.

Ironically, this has all happened in parallel with many universities - especially the University of Sussex - becoming increasingly reliant on international student fee income. At the same time as revoking sponsorship for Luqman Onikosi, a masters student facing deportation, our University was planning a strategy to rapidly increase the number of international students studying here.

The University’s perception of international students as economic assets has meant that the substantial awarding gap between international and domestic students is rarely discussed and never addressed. While international students are policed in their attendance of classes to ensure that visa obligations are met, how they cope with the course or any extra support they may need is rarely the University’s concern.

Most recently, the University has disbanded the only support structure dedicated for international students, the International Student Support Office.

The University fails to understand the unique and specific experiences of international students and the tailored support they require. There is little to no investment in dedicated programs to support international students. Both academic and pastoral support for international staff and students always comes secondary to aggressive and dehumanising monitoring of their visa status. Those who have moved to the UK to study or work at the University also face a huge financial burden. International students will frequently be paying up to four times as much as home students, and international staff members have to use significant chunks of their salary just to cover visa costs. If our University truly wants to be ‘international’ then it must absorb some of these costs and provide far greater support to those that give Sussex this status.

Key Demands: 1. Support for a fee amnesty for international students 2. No bodycams! Stop the expansion in cyber security on campus.

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3. Provide specific pastoral care and legal support for staff and students who are experiencing immigration and visa problems 4. Introduce an ‘immigration reimbursement’ policy that commits the University to cover the costs associated with work visas (including ILR and the NHS surcharge) for employees and their dependents.

5. Easily accessible and communicated reporting tools for incidents of racism and discrimination. Clear guidance about what will happen next.

6. Mandatory anti-racism and active bystander training for students (including white/ home students) Full list of suggested policies: • Support for a fee amnesty for international students • Provide specific pastoral care and legal support for staff and students who are experiencing immigration and visa problems • Introduce an ‘immigration reimbursement’ policy that commits the University to cover the costs associated with work visas (including Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) and the NHS surcharge) for employees and their dependents • Stop ‘over-compliance’ with the Home Office. Put a set of criteria or a framework in place to guarantee that Sussex does the minimum possible compliance by default.

For instance, there needs to be a guideline for how long universities can keep students who are experiencing visa issues enrolled for.

• A commitment that migrant students and staff will be able to take collective action and legal recourse against the University without their precarious immigration status being used against them in order to silence them. Specifically in regards to industrial action and direct action by students • More easily accessible and communicated reporting tools for incidents of racism and discrimination • Mandatory anti-racism and active bystander training for students and relevant staff • More financial support for international students through scholarships, bursaries and the hardship fund (expand the Article 26 Scholarship which currently only benefits two students a year) • Reverse the recent decision to equip security staff with bodycams • Specific feedback methods for international students • Provide specific and tailored academic support for international students. Expand the ‘international student support service’, and provide staff with training on cultural competency • An end to attendance monitoring of all students, which puts the visa obligations of international students above their own welfare 21

Increased surveillance of all students via attendance monitoring, bodycams on security staff, and recorded video calls is of particular concern for international students who face far more extreme consequences should this data be used by the Home Office. In fact, the University’s position as a border control agent holds significant power over international staff and students who fear how strike action and legal recourse against their institution might affect their own immigration status.

Resources: https://www.artefactmagazine.com/2020/01/21/dear-international-studentswelcome-to-the-hostile-environment/ https://www.unisresistbordercontrols.org.uk https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/ attachment_data/file/924528/2020-10-01_Tier-2-5-sponsor-guidance_Oct-2020.pdf https://ucu.group.shef.ac.uk/weareinternational-or-are-we/ https://medium.com/ussbriefs/the-hostile-environment-in-british-universitiesc8d2c04da064 https://intnlandbroke.co.uk

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As an insidious government strategy, Prevent is a statutory program that is rooted in colonial, racist and Islamophobic discourses. Islamophobia is a a religion-based discrimination, aversion or prejudice against Islam and Muslims, or those who believe in Islam. In its implementation and practice, Prevent disproportionately discriminates against Muslim students and students of colour.

A structurally racist and Islamophobic strategy, Prevent and its mechanisms spread far and wide in all structures of the University and the wider community. It securitises spaces and people, and as a result, silences their voices, limits their freedoms to practice their religion and actualise their identity, curtails their civil liberties and impinges on their ability to organise, campaign and question dominant discourses.

Thus, as a collective we have a responsibility to challenge the implementation of this strategy, actively campaign against it, uproot its racist and Islamophobic core, in order to eliminate it from all our structures and communities (where it is present in both hidden and visible spaces) and continuously counter its very existence, through building a coalition of students, staff and community members.

Key Demands: 1. The University to remove the discriminatory Prevent duty across all its policies, structures and spaces by creating a student and community-led interpretation of the government’s ‘due regard’ framework on Prevent.

2. The University to be transparent about the covert and overt existence of Prevent in all its various structures, policies, systems and processes.

3. The University to be transparent about and seek to end partnerships with structures and organisations it works with in relation to Prevent.

4. The University to admit that the Prevent program in all its shapes and forms (both overt and covert) is racist and Islamophobic.

Full list of suggested policies: • The University and Students’ Union to end compliance with Prevent in its insidious manifestations across the board.

• The University to remove the discriminatory Prevent duty across all its policies, structures and spaces by creating a student and community-led interpretation of the government’s ‘due regard’ framework on Prevent.

• Breaking the influence of local Police Prevent teams and city council Prevent structures on the University’s interpretation of ‘due regard’ and actions/policies resulting from it.

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• Any University and Students’ Union policies aligned to Prevent to be purged from this influence and comprehensively reformed. Examples include, but are not limited to; Safeguarding policies, IT policies and External Speaker policies.

• The University ULT and its key structures to stop aligning itself so closely with Prevent.

• The University to end work with local Police and City Council Prevent teams (including structures both explicitly and implicitly related to Prevent).

• The University to be transparent about the covert and overt existence of Prevent in all its various structures, policies, systems and processes. Examples include, but are not limited to; ITS and cybersecurity policies, email monitoring and access logging.

• The University to be transparent about and stop, the en-masse training it delivers on Prevent across the University in various overt and covert shapes and forms as well as trainings which are related to Prevent but utilise alternate terminology to mask their real agendas. Examples include, but are not limited to; Senate Prevent training, Council Prevent training, Safeguarding Training, Training given to Residential Life Connectors.

• The University to be transparent about and seek to end partnerships with structures and organisations it works with in relation to Prevent. This also includes being transparent about any agreements in place with external bodies. Examples include, but are not limited to; data sharing agreements with local authorities, training providers.

• The University to be transparent about actual cases of students being referred to or having interactions with Prevent related structures.

• The University to listen to actual student experiences, collated by the Students’ Union or student groups, to inform itself about the experiences and cases of students being referred to, policed by or impacted in any shape or form by Prevent and its related structures.

• For there to be more transparency around which structures of the University have taken Prevent funding as well as ending any funding received by any structure of the University from a Prevent related initiative.

• The University to highlight and acknowledge how Prevent does not align with the University’s core values.

• The University to admit that the Prevent program in all its shapes and forms (both overt and covert) is racist and Islamophobic.

• The University to use its position in wider society and national circles to outspokenly criticise the policy and lobby the government for its abolishment and reform.

• The University to write to the OfS and government bodies expressing its aversion and disapproval of the Prevent Policy.

• To end all unnecessary surveillance, monitoring and policing across the University.

Examples include, but are not limited to; suggestions around CCTV cameras in 25

the Muslim Prayer Rooms, tracked card access for Prayer Rooms, email and IT surveillance.

• Eliminate the limitations that Prevent brings for Muslim students, staff and activists.

Examples include, but are not limited to; academic research and writing on various subjects, not being able to engage with course content and class discussions out of the fear of being referred to Prevent, societies not being able to invite speakers and host events freely, external speaker policies used as a key silencing tool by Prevent, Muslims students and staff having to self-censor themselves, the chilling effect of Prevent, the silencing of dissenting voices, stifling student activism.

• The University to eliminate any Prevent influenced rationality, analysis and outlook in its welfare, wellbeing, counseling and support services. This also includes not using student mental health and welfare vulnerabilities as markers and a means to refer them to Prevent. This systematically marginalises Muslim students from seeking counseling and support out of the fear of being reported to Prevent.

• The Students’ Union to identify and purge the existence of overt and covert influence of Prevent related mechanisms within its own departments, policies, systems, processes and engagement with the University. Examples include, but are not limited to; eliminating Prevent from external speaker policies, a safeguarding policy aligned with the University’s Prevent influenced interpretation of it, engaging with the University’s Prevent steering group and Safeguarding group.

• To embed anti-Prevent paradigms and initiatives into both University and Students’ Union safeguarding policies.

• To Introduce a University wide Preventing Prevent program - a collective that would aim to create a counter-narrative and plan actions around opposing Prevent.

• Introduce mandatory Preventing Prevent training for all Students’ Union staff and open training sessions for all students. This includes training societies and how they can identify/end compliance with it as well as support their members in experiencing Prevent’s insidious manifestations.

• The Students’ Union to use all its organisational resources and facilities to educate, publicise, support, log cases of referrals/interactions with Prevent, work with students on their actual experiences with Prevent and oppose this strategy as well as lobby the University to end compliance with it in all its shapes and forms.

This includes passing another renewed anti-prevent policy that has even greater demands and commitments from the Students’ Union.

• For academics, staff as well as UCU and other campus trade Unions to commit to working to resist and dismantle this discriminatory policy by being trained on Preventing Prevent. This includes, but is not limited to; listening to the experiences of students with Prevent, being open about this in their classes so it does not hinder their students’ engagement within their courses, to not work as spies by referring students to Prevent, understand how this seriously negatively impacts their students, for academic advisors to genuinely support their students if they have experiences with Prevent and lobbying against Prevent a national level.

• To ensure that the Chaplaincy services remain comprehensively free from Prevent 26

and its associated frameworks, rationalities, processes and structures. This includes not adding Prevent in any shape or form to the brief of any Chaplain, especially the Muslim Chaplain (e.g being responsible for referrals or safeguarding from a Prevent lens) as well as using Prevent to police, monitor, influence and shape the structure of, personnel in charge and activities within the Muslim Prayer Room, which is primarily a student-led space that the Muslim community manages with support from the Muslim Chaplain.

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The Brighton and Sussex area provides services, space and shelter to University staff and students. In turn, the University and its staff and students have a major influence on the local area and its residents and communities. Therefore, the University has a responsibility to ensure that its members are harmonious with local communities and that as an institution, it gives back to the local area. A culture shift cannot happen without engaging with local communities, organisations and residents together to create real change. Therefore the University must actively support and promote antiracist work with these groups as a key stakeholder in the area.

Institutional racism has long term effects for individuals and communities. It has been and still is oppressive. The impact on opportunities and mental health can completely alter the trajectory of a life, always resulting in its victims not receiving the outcomes that they deserve. Key pillars of anti-racist work are not only preventing harm and ceasing racist practices, but also providing reparations and justice to those who have been victims of racism. This is what we call radical care.

Building community and enacting radical care on and off campus will serve to protect and heal our staff, students and local community from the damage that racism at Sussex causes and has caused.

Key Demands: 1. Hire more counsellors and support staff in all student experience offices who identify from a Black, Asian or Ethnic Minority background, have lived experience of racism and have training around providing support for students of colour.

2. Review and improve the support available to students and staff who experience racist abuse, including but not limited to: 3. Compassionate leave for staff 4. Inclusion of racism within exceptional circumstances for assessments 5. Counselling provided by facilitators who specialise in dealing with the impacts of racism on mental health 6. Work closely with local residents and community members to ensure a healthy and supportive relationship between the University and the community 7. Create and host a series of free or heavily subsidised educational workshops and classes for local residents and community members from marginalised communities 28

8. Invite residents and community members to hear their thoughts and ideas about how to build a more anti-racist Sussex and Brighton community 9. Work with local authorities and organisations to undergo anti-racism training and reduce racist incidents within the Brighton and Sussex area. Including but not limited to the Council, the Police, B&H buses, local nightclubs and bars.

10. Lobby against the disproportionate stop and search rates for people of colour in Sussex Full list of suggested policies: • Openly acknowledge that Sussex, like all other universities, has an issue with institutional racism. This will dispel post-race narratives that hinder anti-racist work and build back trust and respect from staff and students of colour.

• Regularly review the dignity and respect policy with student and SU feed in to ensure that policies are in line with anti-racism - Raise the profile of the policy amongst staff and and students in the University by ensuring students and staff have to confirm they have read and understood it; students as part of registering for their course and confirming their details on study direct.

- Ensure policies address racism that is experienced within the LGBTQI+ community and towards students with disabilities - Add policies to combat racism that has arisen in light of Covid-19 • Create and promote and effective reporting tool to ensure a zero tolerance to racism at Sussex - Allow reports for incidents on and off campus and refer off campus reports to appropriate third parties i.e police, venues, B&H buses - Enforce real consequences for offenders i.e disciplinary action • Create spaces to educate white students, staff and local community members about the impact of racism on the mental health and opportunities of individuals and communities. Promote anti-racism, empower staff, students and community members to be allies and actively involved in anti-racist work - Training and education for all students and community members - Integration of race and anti-racism throughout curriculum • Organise and host a variety of regular events for different cultural identities open to students and staff. Including but not limited to: - Non-politicised / safe space nightlife and social events on campus and in Brighton town centre - Peer support groups - Specific events, forums and support groups for students who also identify as part of the LGBTQI+ community 29

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- Specific events, forums and support groups for students with disabilities • Hire more counsellors and support staff in all student experience offices who identify from a Black, Asian or Ethnic Minority background, have lived experience of racism and have training around providing support for students of colour.

- Provide training for existing staff - Ensure that these staff keep up to date with global issues which may have an impact on the mental health of international student and students of colour - Bring in external facilitators who identify from a Black, Asian or Ethnic Minority background, have lived experience of racism and specialise in hosting peer support groups for people of colour and provide a variety of regular sessions for staff and students • Review and improve the support available to students and staff who experience racist abuse, including but not limited to: - Compassionate leave for staff - Inclusion of racism within exceptional circumstances for assessments - Counselling provided by facilitators who specialise in dealing with the impacts of racism on mental health • Create links between Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority alumni and current students of colour through regular events and mentorship schemes with the aim to empower students and provide spaces to recognise and discuss difficulties • Hire more academic staff and tutors who identify as Black, Asian or as a person of colour to improve diversity and representation within the staff body - Review and improve hiring procedures to ensure that the process does not discriminate against individuals from Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority backgrounds - Create specific and full-time race equity roles that sit within school management for each school • Ensure that racially sensitive topics are taught by staff who identify from a background that has lived experience of the topic and where this is not possible bring in a guest speaker to deliver the topic • Create targeted bursaries and grants for Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers to improve diversity of the student body and research staff.

• Recognise and reward staff and students who actively work to support Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority students and staff or engage in anti-racist work at Sussex and/ or in the local area • Create links with local community groups and anti-racist groups from the Brighton and East Sussex Area - Provide rooms and spaces to facilitate community support groups and 31

meetings for anti-racist charities and community groups on campus - Promote opportunities for students to work with these groups - Specifically look at integration with XR and how we can diversify climate justice at Sussex - Provide bursaries and grants for local community groups working on antiracism or bettering the lives of people of colour in Brighton and Sussex • Work closely with local residents and community members to ensure a healthy and supportive relationship between the University and the community - Create and host a series of free or heavily subsidised educational workshops and classes for local residents and community members from marginalised communities - Invite residents and community members to hear their thoughts and ideas about how to build a more anti-racist Sussex and Brighton community • Work with local authorities and organisations to undergo anti-racism training and reduce racist incidents within the Brighton and Sussex area. Including but not limited to the Council, the Police, B&H buses, local nightclubs and bars.

- Lobby against the disproportionate stop and search rates for people of colour in Sussex

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