Frivolous

I had a very detailed dream about getting my bike serviced. When I arrived at the bike shop Jason from the current series of Married At First Sight Australia was in charge. It was utterly bizarre. In real life I did actually get my bike serviced today in anticipation of doing some cycling over the Easter weekend. The repairman was not Jason from the current series of Married At First Sight Australia.

Positive developments at work in that a survey went around about phasing back into the office. It means there might be only one more week of working in isolation before something resembling normality. It’ll be a gradual re-entry but as long as there are enough colleagues around for it to create somewhat of a hubbub, it’ll get back to the type of environment I do best in.

The April Fool’s joke this year must be the government’s report on institutional racism. Either our government has no empathy or they’ve deliberately chosen to gaslight the public and pander to their supporter base via a tick box exercise. This is a rhetorical statement; all parts of it are true.

Government loyalists will now be able to forever retort that there was a report that showed the UK doesn’t really have an issue with racism. In fact, we do. David Lammy and others have consistently drawn attention to his 2017 report into structural racism in the justice system, which had a set of recommendations for the government, and which have been overlooked. And now we are supposed to respect a report four years later that downplays institutional racism.

It’s absolutely valid that the report highlights disparities between the same racial group in different areas of the country, but it must examine the reasons behind this, as they are linked to wider socio-economic issues as well as racial biases in all areas of life. Crucially, it seems like the report has missed the opportunity to highlight the role that individuals play in upholding racism even where equality legislation exists and where legal barriers that upheld racism have been dismantled. This progress counts for nothing if individuals with power and authority within institutions can act subject to their own unconscious biases or more active prejudices.

This is the real never-ending opportunity for growth and development for every citizen, which the report should have put front and centre. All members of society need to widen their perspective on issues such as micro-aggressions and how they play into racial disparity. There is a chance to reform education to focus on building perspectives and understanding culture and society instead of reciting simultaneous equations and reading An Inspector Calls. I quite liked the latter but I don’t deem it as important as understanding how to navigate the modern world.

Unfortunately to think creatively about this requires nuanced thinking and a level of humility that go over the head of our government.

I found this reel of thread on my desk. Frivolous Pink. The office is completely deserted but it’s appeared since Monday. Quite baffling. I’m looking forward to being in the office more often and alongside others, even if random objects appear.

My hair now resembles that of a LEGO figure and it’s about three weeks until much can be done about it.