Mercedes F1’s Lewis Hamilton has set up ‘The Hamilton Commission’ in partnership with Royal Academy of Engineering’ to support his diversity bid.
Having been vocal all-through since the Black Lives Matter movement kick-started, Hamilton has revealed his first plans in helping younger batch to come through in the field of motorsport in partnership with Royal Academy of Engineering.
In an exclusive column on The Sunday Times, the F1 champion revealed about ‘The Hamilton Commission’. In his write-up, he went through why he has been so involved in the movement, which has been questioned by many.
“I’ve been fighting the stigma of racism throughout my racing career — from kids throwing things at me while karting, to being taunted by fans in black face at a 2007 Grand Prix, one of my first Formula One races,” wrote Hamilton.
“I’m used to being one of very few people of colour on my teams and, more than that, I’m used to the idea that no one will speak up for me when I face racism, because no one personally feels or understands my experience.
“Most of the time, they don’t even see it and if they do, they let their fear of saying the wrong thing get in the way. Despite my success in the sport, the institutional barriers that have kept F1 highly exclusive persist.
“It is not enough to point to me, or to a single new black hire, as a meaningful example of progress. Thousands of people are employed across this industry and that group needs to be more representative of society.
“The research partnership will be dedicated to exploring how motorsport can be used as a vehicle to engage more young people from black backgrounds with Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects and, ultimately, employ them on our teams or in other engineering sectors.
“The time for platitudes and token gestures is over. I hope that The Hamilton Commission enables real, tangible and measurable change. When I look back in 20 years, I want to see the sport that gave a shy, working-class black kid from Stevenage so much opportunity, become as diverse as the complex and multicultural world we live in,” summed up Hamilton.
The full column can be read here: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/lewis-hamilton-i-wont-keep-quiet-about-the-unspoken-racism-in-this-country-0w53x30s3
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