October is Black History Month. This year, Hinde Street invited Margaret Greer – National Officer, Labour councillor, and London District Representative to the Methodist Church Conference – to speak on racial justice. This Sunday (22/10), Margaret joined us at our 11am Worship and delivered a thoughtful, evocative, and informative reflection on Black History Month. Margaret spoke about the role of Black History Month in Britain, her perspective on taking on leadership roles in professional and religious organisations, and the importance of the ongoing fight for equality, diversity and inclusion.
You can read more about Greer in her biography below.
Margaret Greer is the National Officer, Race Equality working for the trade union UNISON, and she was also the first winner of UNISON’s Nelson Mandela Award for outstanding work in the fight against racism and inequality.
One of Margaret’s many roles is to advise on race equality at all levels, including the National Executive Committee (NEC). This strategic role has a more thorough understanding of the barriers faced by Black people in the workplace and the broader community, acting as lead officer in UNISON’s National Black Members Committee. In 2009, Margaret was instrumental in the development of UNISON’s Race Discrimination Claims Protocol and was part of the senior management and legal team in implementing this policy. In 2017, she was a participant in (OBV) Operation Black Vote MP Shadowing Scheme.
Margaret was elected a Labour Councillor in May 2018 and again in 2022, former Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the Labour Party in 2019. She is proud to represent the London Borough of Enfield, Upper Edmonton Ward.
Margaret was appointed Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Vice Chair of the Equalities Board, member of the School Governor’s Board and Enfield Council’s Regeneration & Economic Development Scrutiny Panel. She is part of the London based All-Party Parliamentary Group with Show Racism the Red Card.
In 2019, Margaret was one of 30 cohorts with Operation Black Vote, in partnership with the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, Magdalen College, and the House of Commons. Operation Black Vote participated in the first Pathway to Success, a 5-day residential Leadership Programme with the aim to nurture the country’s future Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) leaders, and to improve the representation of BAME communities within civic and political roles in the UK.
Since 2021, Margaret has been the London District Representative to the Methodist Church Conference.
In 2022 Margaret completed the ‘Future Candidates programme and Jo Cox Women in Leadership programme run by the Labour Party and Labour Women’s Network. In 2023 Margaret was part of the Bernie Grant Programme Induction Day panel ‘Labour Party, Trade Unions and Anti-Racism’.
Margaret believes ‘we must ask questions about how we develop prejudices and biased opinion, how we become hateful of others and why we discriminate. When we are honest about answering those questions, we will begin the real journey of equality and diversity in our society.’
Margaret is passionate about all things to do with ‘Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Manchester United Football Club’.