The Pharos Spring Lecture, given by the author of the Sewell Report on race in the UK, followed by a discussion on-stage with Deroy Murdock.
‘So much of what we think we know in the name of “black communities” is rooted in misery and victimhood. This is not to diminish the reality of racism, but as Jamaican singer Dennis Brown would say “What about the half that has never been told?”‘
In the Pharos Spring Lecture, Tony Sewell explores the drivers of black success in Britain today, rejecting victimhood and low expectations while embracing a visionary view of black life, in which achievement has little to do with ‘race’ and everything to do with agency and self-affirmation. Disrupting the very idea of ‘Blackness’ itself, Lord Sewell presses for the collective humanity that is now so unpopular in the age of ‘identity politics’ and provides an antidote to the idea that the lives of black people should be a decolonising project. Freedom from mental slavery is knowing how to be free, not struggling to be.
After his lecture, Lord Sewell will be joined for a discussion on stage by Deroy Murdock.
Born in Brixton, Lord Tony Sewell CBE is an internationally-respected author, educator, and statesman. His path-breaking charity ‘Generating Genius’ has helped hundreds of young black Britons to forge careers in STEM.
In July 2020, he was appointed Chair of the Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparities: the Sewell Report made him the target of a cancellation effort by his critics, but his recommendations now form the basis for the government’s policy on tackling racial inequalities.
Sewell was elevated to the House of Lords in 2022. He was honoured by the government of Jamaica in 2023. His new book, Black Success: The Surprising Truth will be published by Forum in March.
Deroy Murdock is a prominent political commentator, currently contributing editor at the National Review and formerly Media Fellow at the Hoover Institution.
Doors will open at 4.30pm 
Reserve a spot HERE
Date and time: Wed, 21 Feb 17:00 – 18:30
Location: The Sheldonian Theatre, Broad Street Oxford OX1 3AZ