Our Antiracism Statement

Addressing systemic inequalities, disadvantage and discrimination

Anti-racism is an active and conscious effort to work against all aspects of overt and systemic racism.

We recognise that racism goes beyond conscious or open hostility towards individuals or communities because of their culture, colour, nationality, race or ethnic background. Racism can be subtle and unconscious. To truly tackle racism we need to understand the role we all play.

Racism is not an individual problem, and cannot be solved by blaming or shaming individuals (although we will call in/out unacceptable behaviours). We must work together to overcome the cultural barriers we have inherited to create an equitable society. 

Whilst there has been an improvement in commitments made across the UK to create a fair and equal society over recent years, racism and racial inequalities still exist in our everyday lives. This perpetuates within our food system, with farming being the least diverse profession in the UK and massive inequalities within UK land ownership. We must also acknowledge our own shortcomings as an organisation.

By embracing and adopting an anti-racism approach we are consciously structuring our activities to reflect our values (in particular Systemic Change) and our actions to address the systemic barriers to race equality that exist within OFN UK. This requires solidarity, bravery and honesty in recognising that there remains much to do and we must work collectively to listen to the experiences of marginalised groups and to tackle these inequalities.

We welcome any feedback on this statement and you can contact us here.

Racism must be overcome by everyone.

“Nobody’s Free Until Everybody’s Free!” – Fanny Lou Hamer