As we at WIA have watched events unfold in America, like many, our members were appalled to see the life of a man so meaninglessly and brutally taken, by those whose duty it is to protect all of us.

This is not a time for silence. George Floyd's Life Mattered. The lives of all those who have been taken in such brutal circumstances mattered. And so we raise our voices in solidarity with our Black members. Black Lives Matter.

We recognise that parallel struggles to those in America are taking place here in the UK. That although the histories are different, the structural inequities are similar, and have played out over generations.

We recognise how challenging it can be to exist at the intersection of race and gender, and that the structural inequalities of both are compounded in that space. That at a time like this, in the midst of the global pandemic, with its disproportionate effect on Black people, and those of all ethnic minorities, just keeping going has been hard for many. At work and study, as mothers, carers and teachers, perhaps through the loss of loved ones, in isolation there has been much to juggle. The mental health of many will have been affected, and for those from ethnic minorities, the death of George Floyd may have made things feel relentless.

Times like this remind us of the weight of Black motherhood, and also of some of the things born of that pain: the Black Lives Matter movement in the US, the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust in the UK. As we move forward we would like to join with others in asking what sustained solutions might be, no longer catalysed by pain or the remediation of inequality and injustice, and how we can work together to find them. We would like to find better ways of supporting, and giving a voice to our members from ethnic minorities.

The events in America are playing out largely in cities. Cities have been the sites of the highest death tolls both in the UK and in America during the pandemic. How do we contribute to improving lives, and eradicating the inequalities that exist within them?

We hope that this is a conversation we can have with all of you.

The WIA team.