MBPA Awards 2007
Our 2007 AGM (May 18th) saw the inaugural presentation of our Community & Staff Awards. It is our intention to present the awards on an annual basis at our AGM.
The MBPA Executive Committee felt it was appropriate to formally acknowledge and reward a person &/or organisation from the community and an employee &/or department of Merseyside Police who have exemplified the ethos of the MBPA constitution over the preceding 12 months.
Several worthy nominations were put forward. The MBPA Committee cogitated, discussed and debated the merits of each before finalising the two winners, the details of which is below.
Community Award – Mr Eric Lynch
Eric Lynch is a senior black scouser and honorary Ghanaian Chief. He left school at the age of 14 and couldn't read and write because in those days it was judged that black people didn't need such skills. Within a few years however, he had taught himself to read and write, partly because of his fascination for the history of Liverpool. He needed to know how things had come about. Such was his curiosity that he travelled all over Liverpool, unafraid of the racial divisions encompassed by the geography of North and South sides of the city. However this did not come without risk and there were one or two occasions when he was abused and chased because of the colour of his skin.
His need to know even led him to unsuccessfully stow away on a ship bound for Barbados, but discovered before the sailing he was unceremoniously thrown back to the Liverpool shore. And so Eric learnt about Liverpool life and its history. He worked on the docks and later in the council's direct building labour organisation. Slavery, racism and Liverpool seem for many to ring together.
It fitting that someone who has moved around the city, explored it's history and worked in bastions of white employment should now be the slavery tour guide in Liverpool (see home page ‘Liverpool Slavery Tour’). In a way it shows that despite everything, the barriers of racism were always there to be broken down and Eric, with his imposing stature, confidently moving between the communities and explaining their histories, seems to be a natural ambassador.
I first met Eric several years ago at a meeting in Toxteth. He wasted no time in robustly questioning where I was from, what I knew about the area and generally what my motivation was for being at the meeting. Though slightly perturbed, (primarily because you assume your track record of what you stand for goes before you) I welcomed the opportunity to make it clear about what MBPA and I stood for.
I also welcomed Eric’s questioning because the community needs people to act as guardians of the community who are prepared to ask such questions. Eric’s motivation was to establish that the person sat at the table wearing a Police uniform, knew the history of the area and was not just a tokenistic public servant with little connection to the area or the ability to understand and acknowledge the impact of racism and the many ways in which it manifests itself.
I attend various events and meetings and whenever Eric is present he almost always ‘represents’ on the issues surrounding race discrimination, in his own inimitable and often uncompromising style.
The Merseyside Police Diversity Training Team have been working with Eric since taking them on his internationally renowned Slavery Walk from Liverpool’s Maritime Museum in August 2006. He has worked on the Force’s Race Awareness module from the beginning and has been invaluable during the consultation phase and throughout as an Interface Guest.
It isn’t easy to be an Interface Guest and it is part of Eric’s skills as a facilitator and orator that he helps people to understand the issues faced by people from Black and Racial Minorities in Liverpool, both in a historical context and also the 2007 perspective.
Eric gave an impassioned and moving acceptance speech. MBPA is grateful to Eric for his past and current contributions towards countering racial injustice and supporting those who suffer from it. Thank you Eric.
Staff Award – Inspector Helen Corcoran
Inspector Corcoran is currently an Inspector in the Strategic Development Department of Merseyside Police. She has written a number of papers in relation to Diversity. She is inclusive of all the equality strands and has held focus groups on relation to Promotion procedure, Gender Agenda 2, High Potential Development scheme/promotion and recently submitted a paper regarding the creation of an Equality unit within Merseyside Police.
At every stage of that paper she consulted with Staff associations et al. This included the TRUE (Trust, Respect, Understanding, Empathy) project team. Her language is always inclusive and nothing is ever done simply to tick a box or evidence her extensive portfolio.
She makes herself available to discuss issues in relation to minority groups. Inspector Corcoran has been working on a number of projects over the last 12 months and has carried out various roles within the Force. One of her projects included research into why certain minority groups were underrepresented in certain promotional exams.
Inspector Corcoran is very committed to diversity and is genuinely concerned with seeing and making change happen.
The Presentation
Mr. Lynch gave a moving acceptance speech, much of which was related to his own experiences. He dedicated his award to his late mother who, as a white mother of black children in Liverpool, suffered significant racism. Clearly she was an inspiration to him.
Inspector Corcoran was surprised and somewhat taken aback, but during her acceptance speech she pledged to continue to speak out and challenge discrimination and inequality whenever she comes across it. Both were unaware they were going to receive their awards and yet despite this, they were present at our AGM, when they were not obligated to be.
Their presence was a testament to their desire to immerse themselves in the issues centered on racism & discrimination. MBPA were proud to acknowledge such conscientiousness and sincerity, a rare commodity in itself.
Vinny Tomlinson
Chair, MBPA
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