Introduction: Why Brit(ish) Matters
Brit(ish) is not simply a memoir or a sociological analysis, it is a courageous and necessary interrogation of what it means to be both Black and British in a country that continues to struggle with its imperial legacy, institutional racism, and national identity. The book is a deeply personal and politically urgent account of identity, belonging, and exclusion.
For me this book provides an essential education. It offers powerful insight into the layered realities of being Black in Britain, challenging comfortable myths of British tolerance and post-racial progress. It forced me to ask: Who is allowed to belong? Whose histories are told? And what does true inclusion look like?
Below is a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of the key messages, learning points, and actions Brit(ish) encourages me to take.
Chapter 1: Identity
- Key Learning: Identity is not just personal, it’s political. Afua explores growing up in Wimbledon, negotiating her Blackness in a majority white space where her Britishness was constantly questioned.
- Action Point: Reflect on how “Britishness” is framed in our environments. Whose identities are centred? Start conversations about inclusive narratives of national identity.
Chapter 2: Belonging
- Key Learning: Belonging is often conditional for Black Britons. The idea of “go back to where you came from” is a persistent microaggression rooted in historical exclusion.
- Action Point: Create welcoming and affirming spaces. Ensure our workplaces, classrooms, or social settings do not require ethnically diverse people to shrink or explain their presence.
Chapter 3: Class
- Key Learning: Class and race intersect in complex ways. Black middle-class experiences are often dismissed, invisibilised, or regarded with suspicion.
- Action Point: Challenge assumptions that conflate Black identity solely with poverty or struggle. Celebrate Black excellence in all its forms and push for representation in leadership and cultural spaces.
Chapter 4: Bodies
- Key Learning: The Black body is policed, fetishised, and commodified. Afua confronts beauty standards, hair politics, and the long-standing regulation of Black bodies.
- Action Point: Educate yourself and others on the politics of hair, beauty, and respectability. Challenge policies and norms that pathologise Afro hair or darker skin.
Chapter 5: Empire
- Key Learning: Britain has not reckoned with its colonial past. Its education system has sanitised or erased histories of violence, theft, and racial hierarchy.
- Action Point: Demand inclusive history curricula in schools. Read, teach, and share resources that include Black British history and the legacy of empire.
Chapter 6: Race
- Key Learning: Race is socially constructed, yet its impacts are very real. Afua explores how scientific racism shaped British institutions and continues to echo today.
- Action Point: Learn about the historical roots of racial categorisation. Understand how those roots influence today’s disparities in health, housing, education, and criminal justice.
Chapter 7: Education
- Key Learning: The British education system marginalises Black students. Afua shares how systemic racism shows up in low expectations, exclusions, and curriculum gaps.
- Action Point: Advocate for anti-racist education policies. Encourage co-produced learning where ethnically diverse students shape what, how, and why they are taught.
Chapter 8: Love
- Key Learning: Interracial relationships are shaped by the racialised history of Britain. Afua navigates love, cultural tension, and the politics of interracial dating.
- Action Point: Acknowledge and confront unconscious bias in personal and social relationships. Engage in honest discussions about race within families and friendships.
Chapter 9: Ghana
- Key Learning: Visiting Ghana exposes the duality of diasporic identity. Afua’s experience reveals both a yearning for connection and the challenge of being seen as an outsider there, too.
- Action Point: Explore diasporic connections thoughtfully and respectfully. Understand the difference between cultural appreciation and appropriation.
Chapter 10: Black Lives
- Key Learning: The Black British experience is not a monolith. Afua uplifts diverse voices and stories, reminding us of both trauma and triumph.
- Action Point: Centre the voices of Black people in discussions about racism, policy, and reform. Avoid generalising or tokenising.
Deep Messages from Brit(ish) – Then and Now
- British Black identity has always existed. From Roman Britain to the Windrush Generation and beyond, Black people have helped shape Britain. Yet our contributions are often erased.
- The British state has not atoned for its role in racial injustice. Slavery, empire, and racist immigration policies are part of Britain’s DNA, and their impacts are still felt today.
- Representation is not enough. Black people being visible in media or positions of power must be accompanied by structural change, cultural safety, and equity.
- Microaggressions are macro problems. Everyday racism is not “banter” or trivial. It’s part of a wider system that maintains inequality and exclusion.
What Needs to Change in the English School Curriculum
Most people educated in England, especially those now aged 60+, were never taught:
- Britain’s active role in the transatlantic slave trade and the violence of empire.
- The stories of Black British figures like Olaudah Equiano, Mary Seacole, Claudia Jones, or Darcus Howe.
- The Windrush scandal and ongoing issues in immigration and citizenship.
- The impact of racism in shaping housing, policing, health outcomes, and employment.
- Black contributions to art, music, literature, activism, and invention.
Curriculum additions must include:
- Truthful colonial history and reparative justice narratives.
- The civil rights movements in the UK, not just the US.
- Celebrations of Black British innovation, not just oppression.
- Compulsory anti-racist education and critical race theory tools for students and teachers.
Final Reflections
Afua Hirsch’s Brit(ish) is a mirror, asking Britain to confront its past and present with honesty. It is a map, guiding us toward inclusive, just futures. And it is a call, for every reader to take action, challenge bias, and fight for a country where everyone truly belongs.
This book doesn’t just educate. It awakens.
Alyson Malach
Facilitator: Anti-Racism Leadership Book Club