Welcome to our first ever newsletter! You are probably receiving this as you attended an event by us or signed up for updates from us! We promise we won't spam you but feel free to click unsubscribe at the end if you don't want to receive our occasional messages.
In this newsletter, you'll find the third edition of our zine, The C Word, looking at the impacts of Covid-19 on the South Asian Diaspora, along with a specially curated quarantine playlist. We're also excited to offer you Ikhatta, a digital gathering we plan to host over the coming few months - from poetry and Insta lives to teach-ins and workshops, we have you covered! If you're keen to support BAME and grassroots movements in this time, have a look at the people we've been featuring over on our Solidarity Circles. Check out an amazing series of articles by Dr. Rima Lamba on intergenerational trauma in the South Asian community. And finally, we're excited to launch Ansuni Stories, a project looking at collectivist culture in the South Asian diaspora community - click the link below and share your story with us.
In Solidarity
The Rights Collective Team
The C Word: COVID-19 and the South Asian Diaspora
Our latest zine looks at the impact of COVID-19 on the South Asian diaspora community. We have been seeing news reports on the increased incidence of the virus on people of colour as well as the significant impact on NHS staff, many of which we know re from the South Asian community.
We wanted to use this platform so that members of our community could share their experiences during these difficult times but also look to the future and imagine life after COVID. We were blown away by the amazing submissions and feel privileged to be able to present the artwork, poetry, articles and interviews in this month's zine.
Diaspora Beats for your Quarantine
We hope you enjoy reading the Zine. Here's a special gift from us to you. Our amazing team member Habiba Akther, along with with the authors featured in the zine, has curated an accompanying playlist over on our Spotify channel which you can enjoy while reading.
Ikhatta; a digital gathering
We're also excited to announce the launch of Ikhatta - a digital gathering of arts, poetry, teach-ins, solidarity sessions, workshops and more for our communities under lockdown.
This series is a result of our team examining how we could express solidarity with our community and with those struggling at this time. Ikhatta aims to provide safe, joyful and learning spaces for you, so join us!
Our first session is on Monday 1 June at 7pm BST. Habiba Akther, will be leading a live writing workshop over on our Instagram. Sign up below for updates and follow us find out more about our upcoming events!
Exploring Intergenerational Trauma in the South Asian Community by Dr. Rima Lamba
As part of Mental Health week, Dr. Rima Lamba wrote a series of articles for our blog on the intergenerational trauma experienced within the South Asian community, focussing on the British Diaspora.
She insightfully explores the colonial trauma arising out of the British Raj, Partition and East African expulsions. Later she dives into the impact this has on our community today and what we can do about it.
Ansuni Stories - Impact of Collectivist Culture in the South Asian Community in the U.K.
The Rights Collective is excited to announce the launch of it's new storytelling and research project - Ansuni Stories. We invite you to share your experiences as members of the South Asian Diaspora, exploring the positives and negatives that result from a collectivist culture.
A collectivist culture is one where the needs and expectations of the community are placed above those of the individual. Within South Asian communities, this is seen through the emphasis on family, social circles and community relationships. There are many positives that can come of this and we feel they should be celebrated and built upon. However, we also want to address the negative impacts of such a culture too. One of these disadvantages is the practice of community exclusion against individuals or groups due to their identities.
We welcome responses from anyone from the U.K. South Asian diaspora community who wants to share their experiences but particularly encourage you to respond if you identify as a womxn, including non-binary, queer, or trans.
Solidarity Circles
Inspired by our friends over in the USA, we have started a Solidarity Circle where, those of us who can choose to redistribute some of our resources to those who need it the most right now, will essentially put our money where our mouths are!
We will keep highlighting the organisations we have chosen to give to as we invite you to join us! Follow us on on our social media (linked at the end of this newsletter) to see who we are contributing to next.
Supporting Vulnerable Individuals in the BAME Community
If you work for a front line organisation and are struggling to house vulnerable individuals right now, you can sign up to our partner organisation's Hotel Emergency Accommodation Scheme. If you're a hotel and you'd like to offer up your rooms, you can also sign up. Click for more information.