STATEMENT: Defending charity workers of colour after the Sewell report

The IWGB Charity Workers Branch committee condemns the actions of Tory MPs who have asked the Charity Commission to investigate the Runnymede Trust in response to the trust’s criticism of the Sewell Report. We stand in solidarity with workers of colour in the charity sector who will have further challenges to their rights justified by the report's claim that there is no institutional racism in the UK.

What is the Sewell Report and why is it a threat to charity sector workers?

The Sewell Report, commissioned by the government in response to the anti-racist movement of last summer and published in March 2021, has been condemned by numerous parties, including the TUC, Windrush and other migrants rights campaigners, the British Medical Journal, Black Lives Matter UK and UN human rights experts. Also, the letter to the Charity Commission has been condemned by leading social justice charities.

It’s clear that these MPs are trying to use the Charity Commission as a tool to discourage and suppress the rights of people of colour to identify, speak and organise against the racism they experience.

Why can’t the Charity Commission be trusted?

The Charity Commission has bent to the government’s will in the past and it cannot be relied upon to stand up for workers and marginalised people in the sector. This is a sector that is disproportionately white, with largely white trustees, board members and patrons and where workers of colour are so often relegated to the most precarious, lowest paid, front-line roles. The high ethical standards the sector sets for itself are rarely reflected in its treatment of workers of colour.

What must happen next

The IWGB Charity Workers Branch believes the best way to fight for the rights of workers of colour, and to urge other workers to stand in solidarity with their more marginalised colleagues, is through joining a union, and organising and winning more power for workers and marginalised people in the sector. We encourage all charity sector workers to join us: https://iwgb.org.uk/join