Events

Report on Ghyllgrove schools event

January 2006

I spent the morning in a class where we watched some parts of the Show Racism The Red Card DVD. This was followed by a class discussion. The pupils showed a very good understanding of the issues surrounding racism in society and asked me some very testing questions! After a quick kick-about in the playground the class divided into groups - some writing short poems, others designing posters. One group acted out a play which they will film and send in to SRTRC schools competition (I have high hopes for this!).

After lunch Shaka arrived and signed hundreds of posters, shirts and shin-pads then bravely went into the school assembly hall were he was 'grilled' by the Ghyllgrove infant and junior school. The pupils asked Shaka some very interesting questions about racism, bullying and his career. Shaka was then happy to play some football with the after school football club. All of the young footballers were determined to tackle or take the ball past Shaka so he was very lucky to come out unscathed!

All in all the school staff were very helpful and the pupils keen to learn and Shaka made the whole event really special. I had one of the best days of my life and am even considering becoming a teacher if my other plans of world domination do not work out.

Source: Ben North

Shaka Hislop visits Ghyllgrove!

On Tuesday 24th January at 2:00pm, Shaka Hislop came to our school to talk to us about racism. I got the chance to ask a few question, these are the ones I asked him.

When were people first racist to you?
In university a lot of people were racist to me just because of the colour of my skin.

How did you feel when others were racist to you?
It really hurts a lot and feels very scary.

Have you ever been racist to anyone?
No, not intentionally I wouldn't be racist to anyone because I've had it done to me and I know how much it hurts inside but I think I might have defended myself to let them know they were not hurting me, even though they were.

Have you seen black people show racism?
I haven't actually, but it's called reverse racism and I wouldn't stand for that either.

What advice would you give to others experiencing racism?
Report it to someone in authority, it doesn't matter if it's a teacher or parents just don't take it in to your own hands, it's not something you can deal with on your own.

What makes others racist?
I don't know why others are so hurtful to people just because of the colour of their skin. People just do it for fun and to impress others. It's a lack of understanding.

How do you feel about 'Show racism the red card?'
I think it's fantastic, there's players black and white and from different countries. It shows how it made them feel and their experiences.

These are some football questions that the children asked!

What made you want to be a footballer?
I like playing and hanging out with my friends and football is one of the things I like and my friends like to.

What is it like to be a West Ham player?
It's frustrating at times, but the rest of the time it's a lot of fun.

After the question and answer session Shaka joined in with our football training session. Our teacher was a little nervous about training Shaka but luckily Shaka was a good sport and really enjoyed it. Even though it was very cold he had a run around with us.

We enjoyed seeing him, it was really fun and we would like to say a big thank you.

By Shannon Coleman