Racism is not simply an attitude held by a few extreme individuals; it is a system woven through societies, institutions, and everyday interactions.
It shapes opportunities, experiences, safety, and a sense of belonging. To be anti-racist is not a passive identity but an active, continuous practice.
It requires us to interrogate our own beliefs, challenge behaviours (including our own), and transform the cultures we influence, whether at home, at work, in education, online, or in our communities.
This blog uses two frameworks:
- The RACIST Acronym – breaking down what racism truly looks like in behaviour, systems, and impact.
- The ANTI-RACISM Framework – a guide for meaningful, sustained anti-racist action.
Understanding Racism: The RACIST Acronym
To dismantle racism, we must name it clearly. The acronym RACIST helps us understand how racism operates at interpersonal, institutional, and structural levels.
Pre-judging individuals based on race, skin colour, or ethnicity.
This includes stereotypes, assumptions, microaggressions, and biased expectations that shape how people are seen, assessed, or treated.
Racism maintains an advantage for some groups and a disadvantage for others.
It is reflected in unequal access to education, healthcare, employment, housing, safety, justice, and representation.
Racism is learned.
From childhood, people absorb messages from various sources, including the media, schooling, family narratives, and national histories. This conditioning fuels unconscious bias and normalises inequity.
Racism is not only about individuals; it is embedded in systems.
Policies, procedures, algorithms, recruitment, disciplinary processes, and leadership structures can all reproduce racial harm without intent.
Silence enables racism to thrive.
Not challenging discriminatory jokes, comments, or decisions protects perpetrators rather than victims. Silence is complicity.
Racism causes lifelong trauma – emotional, psychological, social, and physical.
Repeated exposure to racial injustice affects well-being, confidence, safety, and opportunities. Understanding this trauma is fundamental to anti-racist practice.
How to Be Anti-Racist: The ANTI-RACISM Framework
Each letter of ANTI-RACISM explores a core principle and action pathway for becoming actively anti-racist.
Anti-racism begins with truth.
Acknowledge that racism exists, that it causes real harm, and that no one is neutral. Recognise the ways systems have privileged some and excluded others. Acknowledgement is not guilt; it is responsibility.
Pay attention to thoughts, media, language, reactions, and decisions.
Notice:
- who is included or excluded
- who is believed or dismissed
- whose voices dominate
- how stereotypes shape responses
Developing racial self-awareness is essential for behavioural change.
Anti-racism requires ownership, not defensiveness.
Take responsibility for:
- learning
- unlearning
- acting
- challenging harm
When you get something wrong (and you will), repair it rather than retreat. Accountability is a practice, not a punishment.
Be the person who speaks up.
Challenge racist remarks, unequal practices, biased decisions, and discriminatory systems. Intervening can look like:
- asking questions (“What evidence supports that decision?”)
- redirecting conversations
- reporting misconduct
- supporting the person targeted
Silence never creates equity.
(Hyphen) – Pause, Reflect, Connect
The hyphen is a bridge.
It symbolises the transition between understanding and action.
Use this pause to:
- reflect on privilege and impact
- connect with others across differences
- centre lived experience
Anti-racism is relational; it grows through conversation, humility, and solidarity.
Being anti-racist is lifelong learning.
Read widely, listen deeply, and engage with voices across communities. Learn about colonial histories, policies, intersectionality, and systemic inequalities. Education is a protective factor against repeating harm.
Make space and share space.
Amplify Black, Brown, and global majority voices in meetings, curricula, panels, leadership, bookshelves, and decision-making. Amplification is not tokenism when done with ethics and intention.
Anti-racism is not only personal; it is structural.
Challenge:
- unfair policies
- biased recruitment
- disproportionate outcomes
- representation gaps
- disciplinary disparities
System change happens when individuals push institutions to evolve.
Commit time, energy, funding, and influence to anti-racist practice.
Invest in:
- training
- community partnerships
- equitable hiring
- leadership pathways
- culturally responsive curriculum
Equity requires resources, not slogans.
Solidarity is active, not symbolic.
Show up for others, advocate for justice, support those experiencing racism, and build alliances across communities. Solidarity rejects performative gestures in favour of real, sustained connection.
Anti-racism becomes culture when people model it daily.
In your workplace, home, classroom, organisation, and online presence:
- be consistent
- be accountable
- be visible in your values
People learn from what you demonstrate, not what you declare.
Conclusion: Anti-Racism Is a Daily Commitment
Anti-racism is not an identity, a workshop, a badge, or a trend.
It is a commitment to equity, courage, and humanity in every space we influence.
By understanding what racism really is and practising the principles of ANTI-RACISM, we can create environments where everyone belongs, thrives, and is treated with dignity.
Real change starts with one person deciding to act differently.
Collective change happens when that person is all of us.