Shawn SobersMon 01/03/2021 11:38To: democratic.services@bristol.gov.uk Dear Bristol City CouncilI write this is support of the Reparations Motion, which is being tabled tomorrow, March 2nd.Bristol has a global reputation of being a progressive, forward thinking, innovative and independently minded city. Passing this motion for reparations would position the city as a global thought leader, and be respected…
“Do not return evil for evil. Do not indulge in the atrocities which the enemy has been practicing in his usual way, even to the last. Take care not to spoil the good name of Ethiopia by acts which are worthy of the enemy.” Emperor Haile Selassie I – May 5th 1941 I meditate on this quote…
Greetings to you today, January 25th, 2021 My name is Dr Shawn Sobers, and it is an honour to make this statement today in solidarity with the Colston 4. George Floyd in the United States, was killed on May 25th, which is a date known as African Liberation Day. It is so named to commemorate…
Thank you for this invitation to speak at this Parallel State event. In this short address I’d like to share some thoughts relating to three dimensions of the politics of human experience – the nation state, the civic, and the hyperlocal. The Nation State Setting the tone of a Nation State is part of the…
On the BGT 15,000+ complaints about Diversity’s Black Lives Matter dance performance. No matter what medium you work in, when you want to use your art to amplify the voices of oppressed people, and to speak truth to power, you will get people trying to silence you, and criticise you for politicising said platform. Do.It.Anyway!…
Pleased my mum was able to phone-Zoom into her church’s service this. Those seemingly small things which we take for granted can have huge positive impacts for our elders and their feelings of connection. I visited her and the thought back to it brought a big smile to her face. When I visited one of…
From what I’ve seen, this Tweet screengrab is pretty accurate. Even Boris himself only criticises Corbyn rather than talking about his own policies. Tory policies tend to be centred around self-interest of the wealthy, or those who want to gain wealth irrespective that it will be at the expense of others. That’s not good to…
Just trying out these sentences, seeing how it feels saying them out loud…. 1) If only we built up our own spaces, with the same energy that we try to decolonise other people’s. 2) If only we built up places that already belong to us, rather than attempting to decolonise spaces that don’t. 3) With…
In Birmingham with family. 4pm-ish. Pouring with rain, I had my hood up and an umbrella. Saw a Black boy running from a police car. They jumped out, caught him, pinned him down and cuffed him. I ran across the road to get closer to them. Told my family to keep on walking, while I…
[This introduction was delivered verbally, not reading from a script. The below speech was written up afterwards from notes and memory, with some additions placed in brackets.] Introduction by Dr Shawn Sobers to the film ‘Talking about Trees’. Afrika Eye Film Festival – 10th November 2019. Watershed, Bristol Welcome to the final film of the…
