The second half of last year was a whirlwind, so much happened, time seemed to sweep by. In the midst of all that was happening there was some things we didn’t quite manage to share but which seem worth remembering. One of those was speaking at a Black Lives Matter gathering in Wandsworth. The studio’s Sarah was invited by the local group to speak to a young audience about how the built environment is a critical part of the conversation around social justice.

Our cities belong to all of us.

Sarah Akigbogun 17.07.20

Our cities belong to all of us.

For many of us, they are where we build our dreams, make our memories…

Have our families.

They are the backdrop to our lives.

And they are places where we should be able to breath.

Places where all of us can grow and thrive.

And so all of us, should see ourselves in those that create them.

Access to decent Space is a right, and should be equitable.

And that is why I am here today, to encourage you to consider being part of that process.

Making sure you have a say…making sure your vision, your needs, your heritage, are part of what shapes our future cities.

I am an architect, so part of what I do is about making cities.

I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve worked with someone who looked like me. I have worked in an office where I was the only black woman in a thousand. This won’t be the first time you’ve heard a black woman talk about being the only one in the room. I believe empathically that we need to be in the room where the decisions are made. That we need to smash through the glass, and indeed the concrete ceilings. We need to do that to bring about change.

I am not going to pretend it’s easy: My own journey, may be in some parts familiar. I am the daughter of West African parents who met in this city [London]. This is where I was born. I consider it my home. My journey into and within architecture has not been simple or easy, there have been challenges but despite that I was lucky to go to great schools and work in leading offices

I try not allow myself to be invisible – I speak up, I make sure my voice is heard. By doing that we can bring powerful things to the table.

I know it is not that simple. That there are structures, societal barriers, that keep people like me out of those rooms and that we need to continue to push to bring those down, and to keep banging on the doors of exclusion. I know many of you are already doing that. And I want to encourage you to continue to make sure your voice is heard in this space too.

All our voices matter!

We all need to be heard in the process of making and changing the places where we live.

Many thanks to Black Lives Matter Wandsworth and to Jane Brigenshaw and Leonie for the Invitation.

Note: The recent CRED report, has minimised the importance of structural racism in affecting the access of ethnic minorities to the professions. The profession of architecture is still one which still presents barriers for many, on the basis of gender, class, and yes race. These issues do intersect, however structural racism is still a prevalent force in our society, limiting the opportunity of many. If young people are bashing at those concrete ceilings, then then society needs to be creating ways of tearing them down. It is not enough to simply tell individuals to ‘try harder’.