We Need To Talk About Whiteness - with Paul Wilson
*TRIGGER WARNING: Some of the language in this episode may be upsetting to some listeners. Ep 43: Whiteness and the police – Paul Wilson was one of the UK’s longest serving and most senior black police officers. From helping establish the Black Police Association, heavily influencing the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, discussing critical issues with a Home Secretary, a Prime Minister, and an American President, Paul has been at the heart of British policing at a time of intense scrutiny over its commitment to racial equality. Now retired, Paul’s memoir “Rocking the Boat: A Superintendent's 30 Year Career Fighting institutional racism” has been described as “a challenging read” by Trevor Hall CBE, the retired Race Equality Advisor to the Home Office, and “an important wake-up call in the Black Lives Matter era” by Lord Brian Paddick, the former Deputy Assistant Commissioner at the Metropolitan Police. He joins me to discuss his experiences within the MET, his efforts at challenging racism and how much has changed since he first joined.