In the union, the term Black in a political sense is used to refer to people from a visible minority who have a shared experience of racism and oppression.
The union also uses the term BME (Black and minority ethnic), but it is NUJ policy to support the use of the term Black to indicate support for structures that encourage and facilitate Black self-organisation.
Black members council
The BMC monitors discrimination in employment practices in the media industry, promotes best practice, and works with NUJ members in chapels and branches by:
- Promoting better media industry and NUJ Black representation.
- Using the union's guidelines to encourage anti-racist news reporting.
- Supporting the union's George Viner Memorial Trust charity, which gives annual grants to prospective Black journalism students.
The council maintains a critical relationship with Black and minority ethnic media and can act as a liaison between the NUJ and local communities.
It also shapes NUJ attitudes, strategies and action by submitting motions to be debated at NUJ delegate meeting, which decides the policy for the union as a whole.
The BMC organises the Claudia Jones Memorial Lecture during Black History Month every year.
