Young People and (anti-) Racism: whose lives matter in Europe?

Contributor(s): Dr Manmit Bhambra, Hiba Latreche, Magid Magid, Dr Emilia Zenzile Roig | In Europe, racism is often dismissed as an issue of the past, the others, or the extremes. People of colour, activists, and academics alike have long challenged this view. Now, in the wake of global protests against racism and police brutality, European publics at large have also been called to reckon with the role of race on the continent. This panel will discuss how racism has deeply shaped both European past and present and how young people today can determine how it’ll shape Europe’s future. Asking whose lives matter in Europe, the event will explore issues of European identity, religion, politics, and migration. The speakers will discuss young people’s role in anti-racist activism as well as the experiences of young people of colour. Most fundamentally, the panel will not only talk about who gets to be European in Europe today, but what it could mean to belong to Europe tomorrow. Manmit Bhambra (@BhambraManmit) is the Research Officer of the Religion and Global Society research unit and is coordinating its inaugural project, Strengthening Religious Cooperation in Global London. Her research interests are centred around identity politics and formation, ethnic, religious and national identities as well as the broader themes of race, inclusion and minority rights. She has recently worked on research projects with young people at the LSE’s European Institute and Middle East Centre and works actively with youth organisations throughout the U.K. and is interested in issues facing young people today. Hiba Latreche is a Law graduate from the University of Strasbourg, France. Whilst pursuing her studies, she has been serving as the General Secretary of the Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations (FEMYSO), which works towards representing, empowering and developing youth to build a more diverse, cohesive and vibrant Europe. She previously served as the Head of Anti-Discrimination department of EtudiantsMusulmans de France (EMF) and is active within her community, volunteering on issues of civil rights, humanitarian aid and combatting sexism and racism. Magid Magid (@MagicMagid) is a Somali-British activist, writer and a former elected politician. He was a Green Party MEP representing Yorkshire & the Humber at the European Parliament and was previously the youngest ever Lord Mayor of Sheffield. Emilia Zenzile Roig (@EmiliaZenzile) is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Intersectional Justice (CIJ), a Berlin-based organisation combatting inequality and discrimination in Europe. She is faculty member of the Social Justice Study Abroad Program of DePaul University of Chicago and has taught graduate and post-graduate courses on Intersectionality Theory, Postcolonial Studies, Critical Race Theory and International and European Law at prominent European universities. She holds a PhD in political science, a Master of Public Policy and an MBA from the Humboldt University of Berlin, the Hertie School of Governance and Jean Moulin University of Lyon. Jennifer Jackson-Preece is an Associate Professor in Nationalism, with a joint appointment in both LSE's European Institute and the Department of International Relations The European Institute (@LSEEI) is a centre for research and graduate teaching on the processes of integration and fragmentation within Europe. In the most recent national Research Excellence Framework the Institute was ranked first for research in its sector. The 89 Initiative (@89initiative) is a European think-do tank. Through cutting-edge research, the Initiative seeks to help solve Europe’s biggest generational challenges and nudge policy-makers and society forward. This event is part of the ‘LSE European Institute Series: Beyond Eurocentrism’. Understanding Europe requires going beyond Eurocentrism. And yet studies of Europe may still retain the traces of Eurocentric assumptions and prejudices. This event series aims to explore how the shape and shaping of Europe – its political-economy, its political policy making, or its political culture – needs to be rethought in a time of the exhaustion of Eurocentrism. Twitter Hashtag for this event: #LSEEurocentrism