College is urged to ‘decolonise curriculum’

Students have called for Perth College to “decolonise the curriculum” to build on the Black Lives Matter movement.

Highlands and Islands Student Association (HISA) has revealed a string of steps they want from management to stamp out systemic racism.

Among the changes demanded are provision of specialist welfare and mental health support for students in the BAME community and an examination of any historic university links to slavery and colonialism.

Student leaders want to see equality impact assessments published, along with BAME attainment and staffing ratios.

Debbie Das Chaudhury, HISA Perth’s vice-president of activities and welfare, said: “At HISA, we stand in solidarity with our black students, our black staff, the black community and all those affected by the unacceptable recent events.

“We strive for equal representation of the student body across the University of the Highlands and Islands and each of its partner colleges and are demanding radical action from our institution.

“The work to address such inequalities in our society is vast but we’re committed to doing everything we can to achieve racial justice.

“Moving forward, we hope to work closely with Perth College UHI to ensure change is implemented, the university’s wider curriculum is decolonised and that anti-racism is incorporated into our ethos.”

An HISA spokesperson added: “We have seen how issues of racial inequality affect students of colour and we believe that this presents a huge demand for radical action across our institution.

“We will work to ensure that our community is safe for our black students.”