Why Race Matters, British Library

In March 2017, Bernardine Evaristo, a prolific author and the Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel University, London, spoke out about race in contemporary literature. In an opinion poll about literature in Britain today, only 7 per cent of the writers mentioned were Black, Asian, or Mixed Race, in comparison to 13 per cent of the total population. On 9 October, Evaristo will be chairing a conversation dealing with some of these issues, entitled Why Race Matters.

The conversation, held at the British Library, will consider the intersection between race, feminist, and class issues, how this has changed since the 1980s, and how these intersections are seen in, or need to be addressed by, the literary world. Leading the talk will be the influential figures of Reni Eddo-Lodge and Heidi Safia Mirza.

The London based journalist Eddo-Lodge, a black feminist, published a blog post in 2014 entitled Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People about Race. This went viral and led her to write a book under the same title. The book is an insightful and urgent account of how racism manifests itself in British society. Mirza is also an author, and has written a number of significant works, including the 2008 bestseller Race, Gender and Educational Desire: Why Black Women Succeed and Fail. In addition to this, she is Professor of Race, Faith and Culture at Goldsmiths.

General booking for this event opens to the public in early September through the British Library website. Members of the Royal Society of Literature members are able to book now.