Seriously the writer needs to tell us what the 'black community' is. Is it a community of place? Or a community of the mind? Or a stage army for ambitious black politicos on the make? Or is it the the writer's nostalgia or wishful thinking. Today in the UK, to speak for the 'black community' you must be recognised and honoured by society (the white community?) So who would sit on the panel to decide who is or isn't black? Baroness Lawrence? Sir Trevor Philips? Dr (Hon) Marcus Rashford OBE? Sir Lenny Henry? Professor David Olusoga OBE? Would I get a say? (That's a rhetorical question).
The 'black community' as we understand it today is a political, media, academic, celebrity consensus, a feedback loop between certain esteemed individuals and the mainstream media, BBC, Channel 4, The Guardian and others. This was illustrated by the media and political support for black lives matter and the absence of black critical voices in the media and mainstream politics. Who do I trust to decide who is or isn't black? No one.
Seriously the writer needs to tell us what the 'black community' is. Is it a community of place? Or a community of the mind? Or a stage army for ambitious black politicos on the make? Or is it the the writer's nostalgia or wishful thinking. Today in the UK, to speak for the 'black community' you must be recognised and honoured by society (the white community?) So who would sit on the panel to decide who is or isn't black? Baroness Lawrence? Sir Trevor Philips? Dr (Hon) Marcus Rashford OBE? Sir Lenny Henry? Professor David Olusoga OBE? Would I get a say? (That's a rhetorical question).
The 'black community' as we understand it today is a political, media, academic, celebrity consensus, a feedback loop between certain esteemed individuals and the mainstream media, BBC, Channel 4, The Guardian and others. This was illustrated by the media and political support for black lives matter and the absence of black critical voices in the media and mainstream politics. Who do I trust to decide who is or isn't black? No one.