Different Flavour. Same Impact
Published on 19 September 2025 10:59 AM
At Age UK East London we are proud to live, work, and be part of the diverse communities of East London. We are committed to being an anti-racist organisation — one that learns, reflects, and pushes itself to live up to these values in meaningful ways.
Our EDI group has been reflecting on our progress and discussing how we can strengthen our commitment. As part of this work, our colleague Linessa has written this powerful and honest reflection on racism, progress, and the challenges that remain.
Looking back, I see progress. However, from my perspective as a Black person, I also see how little has changed. Different flavour. Same impact.
Racism isn’t new. It isn’t occasional. It doesn’t wait for a national crisis or a hashtag. It shows up in different ways: overt, subtle, coded, polite. Microaggressions. Being spoken over. Being left out. Being tolerated, but never fully in. It’s constant. And it costs.
Every year seems to bring a new flashpoint -protests, violence a viral video. The public responds. Statements get written. But underneath the systems stay intact. For many of us, these moments just confirm what we already know: the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Since 2023, we’ve made visible progress. We signed anti-racist pledges. Set up an EDI group. Improved recruitment processes. Pushed for our leadership to reflect the communities we serve. And we are proud of the diversity across our team - in Newham, Hackney, Tower Hamlets -boroughs that reflect the world.
But pride doesn’t protect us. Representation without power changes very little.
In 2024, we responded to rising racist and Islamophobic violence. We told our staff their safety and well-being mattered. But even saying that felt like a symptom of how little is guaranteed, how much is still up for debate.
This summer 2025, the far-right is more visible -anti-immigration protests, intimidating flag displays, suspicion spreading under the surface. Some colleagues feel physically unsettled. Others are just… tired. It’s not always fear. Sometimes it’s weariness, or quiet resignation: the sense that nothing we do will shift the deeper structures.
Last year’s EDI workshop felt like the beginning of something real. But EDI can’t survive on momentum alone. It needs time, priority and authority. Otherwise, it risks becoming representation without power. A seat at the table, but no say in the meal.
Perhaps that’s why we’re revisiting this work now - not because we’ve failed, but because the world is changing and the pace of our progress must catch up.
We’re now thinking more deeply - not just about who is at the table, but what power they hold when they get there. That’s where change begins. And that’s where it often stalls.
This work requires more than intention. It requires time, authority and discomfort.
Because progress is not the same as justice. And visibility is not the same as safety.
We say we want to be an anti-racist organisation. That means being brave enough to ask:
Are we moving fast enough? Are we ready to act when it’s not convenient?
Are we prepared to give up comfort - to make room for something fairer?
Will we meet this moment - or fall back into what’s comfortable?
Linessa Ollivierre - Newham Carers Community Service Manager