In an Instagram-based collaboration, inspired by the belief that Together We Are Basketball, the three parties worked as one to draw on the strength of our basketball communities.
Following the death of George Floyd and others at the hands of the police in America, the aim was to elevate Black and BAME voices and share experiences, knowledge and ideas on how to move forward.
With contributions from all levels of the British game - from GB, through BBL and WBBL, NBL and academies - players, coaches and others from the game and beyond spoke, with their words delivered via infographics, video messages and live interviews.
The likes of Justin Robinson, Jo Leedham-Warner, Danny Evans, Rheanne Bailey and David Lammy MP contributed, along with a host of others showing collective solidarity in the face of institutionalised and systemic racism.
While the UK has its own range of problems to address, the ongoing motive of this campaign is to listen, highlight concerns and understand how racism impacts our diverse basketball community.
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“Basketball England has been listening to and supporting recent conversations around racism in society and within the game, consulting with numerous individuals and organisations and this joint work with Foot Fire and uNDERRATED, two respected organisations that are highly active within British Basketball culture, is another strand of that.
“Discussions have also led to more reflection and feedback about the part that everyone can play in promoting understanding, fairness and equality. It has been encouraging to see people taking personal responsibility to act and support the campaign to achieve equality for all. It is right at the heart of what our #TogetherWeAreBasketbALL hashtag stands for.
“BE is developing a plan to examine our own effectiveness in reflecting and serving the diverse basketball community and we are preparing a series of actions.”
"I was torn with ways in which I can use my platform Foot Fire to spread awareness of the current racial climate. After consulting with uNDERRATED, we came up with the 'Together We Are Basketball' campaign to create a conversation with individuals from all walks of basketball to raise awareness and collaborating with Basketball England was the best way to engage the entire British basketball community.
“It was amazing to hear from people who have different experiences from basketball as well as the culture surrounding it. Engaging with the basketball community to evaluate was insightful and to hear the broad range of opinions and solutions on combating racism was refreshing."
“Speaking out against racism is important, though creating an active approach to unify the sport against racism speaks volume and that’s important for us as a brand. It shows what our community is about when we use our platforms to reinforce the voices of the unheard.”
As part of the campaign, Basketball England will donate to the charity Black Curriculum and Foot Fire and uNDERRATED will do the same to Black Minds Matter.
Basketball England continues to consult with individuals and organisations within the game and is developing plans for actions to oppose racism and promote equality.
Keep the discussion alive using the hashtag #TogetherWeAreBasketbALL.
See below for a taster of the messages of the Together We Are Basketball campaign and go to Basketball England's Instagram and see the main feed and the 'TWAB Campaign' highlight to see all the contributions from the British basketball community.
