http://www.obv.org.uk/news-blogs/apprentice-defence-joanna-riley

When people got food poisoning at Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant it was shut down until it was okay to resume trade.

People may feel that is comparing apples and oranges, but consider this:

- A few human beings get upset tummies allegedly due to eating at Blumenthal’s restaurant and his ability to trade is stopped until an inquiry considers it safe to resume.

- A human being who had failed in his claim for asylum dies, allegedly due to the actions of a private contractor of the state, and it is business as usual.

The above state of affairs and the dearth of comments here compared to the string about the Apprentice make me question where we are in terms of addressing injustice.

People can argue about celebrity and popularity, and making the blog relevant to everyone, but who is calling the tune to have us dance this particular dance?

When cases like the above are crumbs compared to the Apprentice story, and in the wider blogosphere Gamu from X Factor, what does that say about us?

Ring the Met’s BPA and ask them for an interview. Surely they are the best to answer. However, my thoughts on your final question: “the possibility of further segregating black police officers by having this association which does not permit white officers?”. It does permit them. If they support the cause they are welcomed.

Read the clear statement in blue here http://www.nationalbpa.com/ and I can assure you the Met BPA take the same stance.

I only highlight this as I am thinking of your research, i.e. if the premise of the research is incorrect, then inevitably the outcomes will be too.

Look at the aims and objectives of the BPAs and ask if they achieve those. Don’t assess them on objectives outside of their scope.

By all means if you would like assistance I would be prepared to offer it. I hold an MA in Criminology and am a former Home Office researcher.

Good luck

David

Joanna was by far the most effective person in the group and it was really sad to see her getting labelled aggressive when in fact she was just being competent compared to the noisy, stupid behavior of everyone else in the group.

I think Melissa in the first episode was much more confrontational than Joanna and in a far less polite and constructive manner. Joanna in fact dealt with Melissa’s behaviour very maturely as team leader for that task.

It’s frustrating to see this inconsistency in the way people are perceived and on some level I think it could well be down to racial prejudice.

This is something the BBC seem quite bad for in general. Does anyone remember when Obama got elected and Newsnight invited Dizzee Rascal to speak as a representative of Black Britain?

If you imagine a white president being elected and Newsnight then inviting on somebody like Pixie Lott it would seem laughable. So why do it when a Black President is elected?

It really does take one person to take a stand and make a difference!

Poor Joanne was left with nowhere to turn but to concede and accept the judgement placed upon her by people who had no idea where she was coming from.

I can relate this on so many levels and I’m tired of being labelled ‘aggressive’; I’m not! Like many of people like me; I am passionate and would hate to upset people by being ‘aggressive’.

It’s a cultural feature of many African and Caribbean people to be louder than Europeans and full of expression vocally and physically. Surely, we’ve been here long enough for this to be recognised?

The danger of course is that if we ignore everything to survive then nothing changes. Our challenge, therefore, is to be strategic when and how we confront inequality, whilst always ensuring we keep sane.

But this is our forum: a safe space that we can have these discussions. Thank you RS and Chandni for engaging in such an honest way.

Simon

At university, I had a module titled- Anti-Discriminatory Practice, and to pass I had to evidence that I am not discriminating against service users. I found this module particularly difficult to evidence, because it mean that I HAD to think about the many different ways I ‘could’ have discriminated against someone based on their ethnicity, gender, sexuality, environment etc…. I cringe whenever I think about the day that the university realised that such modules need to be implemented.

Since enrolling onto a scheme with OBV my eyes, ears and feelings have truly been astounded. I have been brought up in an environment where I attended ‘diverse’ educational establishments and workplaces(in respect of ethnicity). I just don’t have it in me to see any differences in peoples abilities and talents based on their skin colour.

I always put up a fight with myself (and where my strength to challenge Simon Woolleys post came from only God knows!) to deny that television channels as such, and reality TV programmes as such, have any racial implications.

I have a lot to learn and a lot to grow, and if anything, I dread the day that I realise the true extent of prejudice and discriminiation in our world…

For the record, last weeks Apprentice showed the firing of Dan Harris who Lord Sugar’s aide Karren Brady remarked that his management style consisted of “standing around, shouting orders”. Other candidates also remarked that he was an aggressive project manager.

Alan Sugar then based his decision on the candidate who lost the task and who other candidate deemed as a bully.

For me personally, based on what was aired, I thought that Joanna appeared to be confrontational in a hostile manner. I also agree with your point that had she been diplomatic in her response to ‘whose idea the product was’ -she may have just earned brownie points, but whether or not this would have worked in her benefit of not going into the boardroom – I have no idea.

Until next week!

I’m a student at The University of Manchester and I’m conducting research regarding the diversity of the police force in the UK. I’m particularly interested in the forming of the BPA and its part in improving equality for minority races. I’ve read the reasoning behind the founding of the BPA but I’m curious to know if and how the BPA has been beneficial to black police officers across the country? Is the necessity of a BPA still there? Your thoughts on the ultimate, final aim of the BPA and when will it be achieved? Finally your thoughts on the possibility of further segregating black police officers by having this association which does not permit white officers?

I hope you can find time to respond to these questions, it will be much appreciated.

Kind regards
Joe Miller

Some of the reasons you have made are why every government should enforce equal opportunities at all levels. Only then will we have anything that’s remotely close to a level playing field.