UK Music’s Diversity Taskforce is today (October 21) calling on the music industry to dump the “outdated and offensive” term BAME – which stands for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic.
In an official press release, UK Music’s Diversity Taskforce said that – following wide-ranging discussions across the music industry and after holding a series of focus groups – it is spearheading calls to ditch the term because it is seen as “misleading and inappropriate by many, particularly those from diverse communities.”
The demand comes ahead of the publication later this month of UK Music’s report into diversity across the UK music industry, which will launch the Taskforce’s ground-breaking Ten-Point Plan.
The Taskforce hopes that ending the use of the term is a way of acknowledge the unique experiences of people from different ethnic backgrounds and that the move will pave the way for greater discussion and insight in the future.
You can read a statement by the UK Music’s Diversity Taskforce chair Ammo Talwar MBE below:
“Our report on workforce diversity in the music industry highlights where positive progress is being made, but also where more strategic long-term work and investment is urgently needed. There is now an unstoppable momentum for change at pace to rapidly improve diversity in the music business and across society. One key change we want to see is the end of the use of a term which is outdated and offensive to many people from Black, Asian and other diverse communities. It is a term that is often used in reports and campaigns, but it’s not relevant in today’s modern music industry and jars with many in diverse communities.
“I have had many conversations with people in the music industry who want to see the end of an acronym which works against the sense of community and common purpose that we are all working so hard to build in the music industry and across society. Our UK Music Taskforce, with the support of many of our partners in the music industry, want the term consigned to the dustbin of history. It’s a key step on the path to an inclusive, welcoming culture that we all want to foster. If there is a need to refer to people’s heritage, it is far better to use a word like ‘Black’, ‘Asian’ or something more specific - rather than a careless catch-all acronym.
“Our diversity is the source of our greatest strength in the music industry. However, we need to bring about further change to ensure our world-leading industry is as diverse and inclusive as possible.”
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