Monthly Archives: January 2022

Diversity, Ethnicity, Inclusion, Race

BBC Radio 3 to shine light on ‘forgotten’ composers

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BBC Radio 3 is to premiere three forgotten orchestral works by composers from diverse ethnic backgrounds as part of an ongoing push to expand the classical repertoire.

Works by Margaret Bonds, Ali Osman and Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges will be heard for the first time in a broadcast on 2 February.

The concert is the first result of a year-long collaboration with the Arts and Humanities Research Council, which funded research into Black, Asian and ethnically diverse composers.

The seven researchers who were awarded funding last spring have been excavating pieces of music that have been rarely performed and, in some cases, never recorded. More

Disability

Inspirational Diversity Champion of the Month

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World Braille Day is on 4 January 2022, with that in mind we have chosen Amy Kavanagh as our Inspirational Diversity Champion of the month.

Amy is a blind activist and freelance disability consultant who uses social media to share her experiences as a low vision Londoner.

She advocates through writing, policy influencing and public speaking. She is engaged with a variety of disability issues ranging from accessible gaming, disability hate crime, digital inclusion, public transport and disabled women’s rights.

In 2018 Amy started the #JustAskDontGrab hashtag, a now globally recognised campaign which raises awareness of the experiences of unwanted touching which many disabled people experience when navigating life in public. Over the last year, #JustAskDontGrab has also become a focal point for disabled women to share their experiences of sexual harassment and assault. Amy continues to campaign for disabled people to have their consent and boundaries respected.

When COVID-19 put the country into lockdown, Amy established The Staying Inn as an online space for disabled people feeling isolated during the pandemic. The pub has grown to a community of more than 2500 disabled and non-disabled people who enjoy events including quizzes, craft clubs, activist interviews and skills workshops. The Staying Inn has become a model for providing online accessible events and now delivers digital inclusion training for individuals and businesses.

In November 2020, Amy was partnered with Guide Dog Ava. This golden retriever diva has supported Amy to rebuild her confidence and embrace her independence after a difficult year. Amy hopes to continue building communities and spaces for disabled people to share their lived experience and campaign for a more inclusive world.

In 2021 Amy came fourth in The Disability Power 100 list.

To find out more about Amy see here https://amykavanagh.co.uk/

To find out more about the Staying Inn see here https://www.thestayinginn.org.uk/ To find out more about World Braille Day see here https://brailleworks.com/what-is-world-braille-day/