The Black Lives Matter movement is a pivotal moment in our history.

It is only right that as an organisation we respond thoughtfully by looking at our values, how we work, and how to contribute towards making a better world, for every person, of every ethnicity. Over the coming days, weeks, months and years we will commit to trying to get it right, or at least very much better.

The following films are a series curated by Simone Ibbett-Brown. She has selected a quote to provide context to each video.

It’s not that Britain is unequal. Pretty much every society on the planet is unequal. It’s the lies that we tell ourselves. We pretend that it isn’t.
― Akala

Black Lives Matter.

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
― Langston Hughes

Black Lives Matter.

Code-switching involves adjusting one’s style of speech, appearance, behaviour, and expression in ways that will optimise the comfort of others in exchange for fair treatment, quality service, and employment opportunities…

This kind of behavioural adjustment… has long been a strategy for Black people to successfully navigate interracial interactions and has large implications for their well-being, economic advancement, and even physical survival.
― The Costs of Code-switching, Harvard Business Review

Black Lives Matter.

this is about being
together
― Bernardine Evaristo; Girl, Woman, Other

Black Lives Matter.

If you are disgusted by what you see, and if you feel the fire coursing through your veins, then it’s up to you. You don’t have to be the leader of a global movement or a household name.
It can be as small scale as chipping away at the warped power relations in your workplace.
It can be passing on knowledge and skills to those who wouldn’t access them otherwise.
It can be creative.
It can be informal.
It can be your job.
It doesn’t matter what it is, as long as you’re doing something.
― Reni Eddo-Lodge; Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race

Black Lives Matter.

I go to prepare a place for you
― Harriet Tubman

Black Lives Matter.

“Breakfast for dinner or dinner for breakfast?”

“Night out or night in?”

“Black lives matter, yes or no?”

Nine people from around the world and living in London sing, dance, speak and play, exploring what it means to raise your voice for the colour of your skin.

What Do You Hope For? is an honest, thoughtful and personal short film of music from world-class operatic artists, and interviews with the voices behind the voices.

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Black Lives Matter.