POLITICS

The abuse of Diane Abbott by a top Tory donor should have us all thinking about how we normalise racism against women MPs. Yet again a black woman in British public life has been subjected to racist and sexist abuse. This may be shocking, but it is not surprising. When Tory donor Frank Hester said that looking at Diane Abbott “makes you want to hate all black women” his comments were extreme. Yet they were hardly out of the ordinary. Likewise, the reluctance of some parliamentary colleagues to address the racial and gendered nature of the comments is sadly unsurprising, as was the slowness with which the prime minister responded, only belatedly and after pressure from ministers, admitting the remarks were racist. Whether you love or loathe Abbott (who has been suspended from the parli...

The Black history knowledge gap is widening – and GOP politicians are making it worse. On the day of the Super Bowl, Matt Gaetz, a Republican member of Congress from Florida, publicly announced that he would not watch one of the most popular sporting events in America. The reason for his boycott? “They’re desecrating America’s national anthem by playing something called the ‘Black national anthem,’” Gaetz explained. The song he criticized is “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which was written by James Weldon Johnson and his brother Rosamond Johnson in 1903. For more than a century, this hymn has celebrated the faith, persistence and hope of Black Americans. “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was sung at the Super Bowl by Andra Day, after Reba McEntire sang the national anthem. Whether or not Gaet...

How governments handle data matters for inclusion. Governments increasingly rely on large amounts of data to provide services ranging from mobility and air quality to child welfare and policing programs. While governments have always relied on data, their increasing use of algorithms and artificial intelligence has fundamentally changed the way they use data for public services. These technologies have the potential to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of public services. But if data is not handled thoughtfully, it can lead to inequitable outcomes for different communities because data gathered by governments can mirror existing inequalities. To minimize this effect, governments can make inclusion an element of their data practices. To better understand how data practices affect i...