BAME representation is the next big test for Labour’s equality agenda

By Jyoti Bhojani

It was once said that the Labour Party was the natural home of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) voters indeed, my grandparents are lifelong Labour voters. But this is no longer the case. With the shift away from two party politics, the BAME vote has been sought after, so much so that at the last general election there were over 100 marginal seats in which the BAME vote could have determined the outcome. Unfortunately, at times, our party has taken the BAME vote for granted. Equality has always been at the heart of the Labour movement – in recent years we sought equality with the minimum wage, civil partnerships, sure start and greater maternity rights. We now need to seek this for our BAME communities – and this will only be done by ensuring BAME members have a voice within the party.

As a relatively new member, I’ve been eager to get involved but have encountered some challenges along the way. Some are faced by all new members and others, I believe, are more specific to BAME members. Therefore when I was elected National Young Labour BAME Officer I felt I must seize the opportunity to ensure that the young BAME Voice is heard.

Many of the problems which BAME members face are on their own doorsteps. Each CLP should have a BAME Officer who has the ability to set up an Ethnic Minority Forum for these problems to be addressed. This sounds great on paper but in practise there’s a lot of confusion and frustration. This is because there are no clear guidelines on the roles and responsibilities of BAME Officers or how to set up an Ethnic Minority Forum. The major problem is reaching out to members. The reasons for this are two fold, lack of information on the ethnicity of our members (this extents throughout the Party) and no access to membership lists. This can easily be changed, firstly, we need to provide support and guidance for BAME CLP officers and secondly we need to make sure that all CLPs do have one, so that all BAME members are represented no matter where they happen to live.

Next, to be able to reach out our members, we need the party to gather ethnicity data and be able to pass it on to CLP Officers who can then make some form of contact with members. Moreover, we should have a formalised way of being able to interact with BAME Labour so that our voice is not only heard locally but also nationally.

In addition to party reform many of our BAME affiliates are also in urgent need of change. One of the biggest difficulties I faced after joining the party has been trying to contact and join BAME Labour – the party’s third largest affiliate. When I tried at conference last year, I found their stand unmanned and with few materials to take away. Compared to the LGBT Labour or the Labour Women’s Network I felt this was a poor showing. I left feeling disheartened, that the organisation which is meant to ensure that our communities concerns are being heard within the party weren’t there just to talk to members.

From Ethnic Minority Forums, to Chinese for Labour, there are so many strands attempting to represent the party’s BAME membership. I believe that this has meant many voices speaking for our BAME members and unfortunately not all are heard. The solution to this is to bring all these bodies together – under one umbrella – to make sure that there is one strong and cohesive voice speaking for our BAME members. I know that whilst BAME Labour has had its ups and downs, this is something that the new committee aims to change.

We’re at a unique crossroads and with the policy and party review process we’ve been given the opportunity to make the BAME voice heard. It’s your chance to have a say on how BAME CLP officers or Ethnic Minority Forums work in your area. Is there something you’ve found works well or doesn’t? What best practice can you share?
Only when the party makes a formal commitment to put race on the agenda, in much the same way as we did with gender equality – will our BAME members be truly heard. This in turn will then lead to the party listening to BAME voters on the doorstep and being in a position to address their concerns within the community.

Until then I will carry on ensuring I do my utmost to make sure that the Young BAME voice is heard and listened to.

Jyoti Bhojani is the BAME officer for Young Labour.