Diversity and Parliament: who are your role models? Video Lecture | How does UK Parliament's Education Service works? - Personal Learning

people kind of always ask me who my role
models are and I often have to think
because they change at different times
of my life so it just depends but I
suppose the constant role model is
actually my parents
my role models if there are any apart
from the sporting and musical ones which
are probably just admiration rather than
people who help to guide my life have
been people who have been able to
demonstrate and lead on the issues of
equality and fair treatment and fighting
for justice and human rights the figures
who are probably most admired and
revered in my life are firstly Nelson
Mandela Martin Luther King a lawyer in
who operated in Brixton and other parts
of London in defending young people who
are having problems with the police and
the courts Rudy Narayan and more
recently Paul Burton who I had the
opportunity of working with and Ken
Livingstone who I worked with as leader
of the GRC
I mean there are half a dozen probably
more dozens if you like models I mean
when I was 12 actually the first black
MPs were elected to Parliament and they
were all on the labor side and of course
I remember I think every single one of
them Bernie grant pulled voting and
Diane Abbott and I think Keith Vaz got
in very gratified to see that Keith Vaz
and Dan Avatar still in the House of
Commons and you know that that obviously
does inspire you you know when you were
a child I mean more broadly than people
like Margaret Thatcher who had great
courage I've written a book about her I
was particularly impressed reading about
other figures in the past you know from
Winston Churchill to people like Lord
Palmerston I gave a lecture about him
and and other people you know never see
people like Nelson Mandela was a great a
great figure growing up so their wide
range of influences
for me the role model of my lifetime has
got to be Nelson Mandela
he is just the individual that I
associated with my views and through
getting on to I just think his
outstanding but I had other role models
I didn't have a father my mother was a
great girl wanted to me and of course
people like Martin Luther King and many
many teachers that took an interest in
my life that were determined that this
young black kid growing up in inner-city
London could make something of his life
I've been very lucky to have so many
wrong
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