UCL launches their ‘Let’s Talk about Race’ campaign

It’s high time that we Talk About Race


UCL has taken a step in the right direction by introducing their ‘Let’s Talk about Race’ campaign, to open up the conversation, and provide resources and support to staff and students.

This campaign is the third sub-section to UCL’s ‘Full Stop’ campaign, which aims to “end all forms of Bullying, Harassment and Sexual Misconduct at UCL for staff and students”. In previous sub-sections, UCL focused on bullying and sexual misconduct.

The Full Stop campaign was the university’s first “institution-wide campaign”, first launched through the UCL Report + Support platform.

In a statement about the ‘Full Stop’ campaign on the Report + Support website, UCL stated that:

“UCL believes in changing the world for the better.  That has to start in our own community. For most people this is a great place to work or study. Yet where unacceptable behaviour does exist, it can have a real impact, and it can be difficult to know how to challenge it. So UCL is asking our community to come together and say Full Stop to Bullying, Harassment and Sexual misconduct”.

The ‘Let’s Talk about Race’ campaign aims to “spread awareness around issues of race and racism at UCL, de-mystify processes and policies around reporting and support available if anyone has faced racial harassment/abuse, and practical interventions for race-allyship and anti-racism”.

The campaign focuses on “race education, increasing reporting of racial harassment and developing anti-racist approaches to change…In order to understand how racial harassment manifests, we must better understand racialisation and racism, then we can better understand the role we all have to play in shaping a new narrative. So, let’s talk about race”.

If you want to get involved in this campaign, UCL has outlined three ways in which you can do so:

  1. Let’s talk about race and racism – advance your race literacy and understanding of racism. This might be through formal education and training or by accessing the vast amount of resources available for self-learning. Talk about what you have learnt using #letstalkaboutrace on social media.
  2. Let’s talk about racial harassmentReport racial harassment when you experience or witness it. Report + Support is UCL’s dedicated platform for reporting harassment, where you can also access advice and support information.
  3. Let’s talk about being anti-racists – Speak out against racism and develop the skills to intervene when you witness it. Learn how to be a race ally and build your bystander intervention skills.

UCL have provided resources and toolkits to help staff and students improve their awareness, and access support if needed, as well as opening up the conversation about racism. The resources also introduce “institutional strategies to make UCL a race-equitable space where staff and students have equal opportunities and are celebrated no matter what race”. The toolkits provide information on “context, definitions, and issues at play, practical measures and tactics at hand that will help to develop a much needed anti-racist culture at UCL”.

If you see or experience an issue you wish to report, you can either report it anonymously or contact an advisor. Reporting anonymously consists of answering 8 questions, while contacting an advisor also consists of additional questions, to understand your situation. If you choose to contact a UCL advisor, you will be able to provide contact details to receive a response from the advisor within 5 working days. Watch the UCL Report + Support video for more details.

For more information about the ‘Let’s Talk about Race’ and ‘Full Stop’ campaigns, UCL’s policies and commitments, and access to various resources and support, check out the UCL Report + Support website.