Equity’s Race Equality Committee Chair, Daniel York Loh, writes for Black History Month on his experience as an Equity member and the changes he’s seen in the union, with language and terms evolving to reflect progress and enlarged vision. Daniel’s piece reflects the 2024 Black History Month theme ‘Reclaiming Narratives’.
As Black History Month comes round again, we on Equity’s Race Equality Committee honour and pay homage to the shoulders we stand on of Black British actors and artists who fought discrimination - sometimes subtle and sometimes not - to not only make a mark in our most perilous of industries, but also, crucially, to pave the way for ALL artists of colour which in turn has made our profession more diverse than ever despite the ongoing challenges.
Our Race Equality Committee today was previously the Minority Ethnic Members Committee. Before that it was the Afro Asian Committee, before that the Coloured Actors Committee – our terminology changing as each generation of global majority Equity members seeks to enlarge on the conversations and campaigns that have gone before.
It was very much Black African-Caribbean Equity members who led the way for the likes of myself. Inspiring, challenging and winning the big arguments time and again. Black British Equity members such as Johnny Worthy, the late Louis Mahoney, Thomas Baptiste and many more who forged a path through the union, persuading the membership that Blackface, Brownface, Yellowface etc are just not acceptable and that if our industry and union wants to be modern, relevant, and forward-looking then it HAS to be more inclusive and, yes, more genuinely equitable.
As a young performer, I went to the Royal Shakespeare Company to watch trailblazers like Hugh Quarshie, Josette Simon, Tony Armatrading and Patrick Miller (the lack of opportunities at that time particularly for Black actresses was stark).
It was the fantastic Roxanne Clinch who first welcomed me onto the old Equity Minority Ethnic Members Committee (MEM). A tireless fighter, Roxy stood proud and strong in a time when we nearly always seemed to be up against it. Less than 1% of the membership then identified as non-White and we felt like a tiny part of the industry. All there was, was justice and its appeal to the wider population.
In a time when so many bad faith politicians and social media influencers look to divide, destroy and discredit we once again look to the shoulders we stand on and remember the fantastic legacy that has inspired us all.
Visit the Race Equality Committee pages to find out more to get involved.
More on Louis Mahoney
Louis Mahoney was the first black officer of Equity and challenged the union to face up to racism in the UK. He drove forward the campaign to block Equity members’ work from being shown in apartheid South Africa, from 1976 up until the 1990s.
Mahony was a familiar face to many audiences of the small screen, appearing in a raft of favourite programmes, including Faulty Towers, Casualty, and Doctor Who.
