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Swarzy: So we are at the Barbican
because something very exciting
is happening between the
27th and the 30th of
September because of
this woman right here
Suzanne Alleyne.
Suzanne: Oh my god
yes me and it is exciting.
Can We Talk About Power?
What is this project all about and why power?
Can We Talk About Power? is exactly that.
I'm a real like what it says on the tin.
Every conversation we have has
power in it, and yet we don't talk about power. That's why I'm here.
You're really bringing it to the forefront.
So what reactions are you expecting?
What conversations are you willing to have
when discussing all of of these topics that underline power?
When I'm in the mode
what I'm really good at is having those really tricky conversations
really kindly.
What I'm expecting is that people do what my friends did
when I started the project.
Because my friends are like "why are you doing something about power for?"
and then I go well what about the power you have over your kids? Or what about
the power dynamics when you were at school?
Or what about when you're at work? Or what about the fact that you're not working?
And then they come back and a few days later and
they're like "I couldn't sleep every time I opened my mouth I thought about power".
That's what it's about.
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So you have got an incredible list of special guests.
Who have you got on the bill?
Wow. We've got Roger Robinson who is a T.S Eliot winner
and wrote the best book ever 'A Portable Paradise'.
Nice
We have got Professor Lisa Feldman Barrett who writes about your
brains and your emotions.
Yeah! Come on!
Come on with that one, I'm telling you.
We've got the legendary Margaret Atwood.
Wow!
Author of 'Handmaid's Tale' for those who might not know her name but know her work.
A wellbeing panel. A range of psychiatrists, doctors, coaches.
So we can really kind of dig in so we can understand power
but to ourselves so that how we can be well.
And then we round up this conversation with an organisation called Banff
who are going to talk to us about different forms of power
and indigenous communities and how we can think about power differently
if we want to.
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Do you find that being a Black British woman asking that power
question sounds differently on the ears of those who may not have
the same experiences as you?
Yes, and of course I situate it by going I'm a Black British woman
and it's through my lens.
And then people just think 'Oh, this is only about race or diversity'.
There's so many things they make assumptions about.
When you talk about power the hormones change in your brain.
How you're percieved.
So my work is for me but it's also for everybody.
There's not one person I've talked to who doesn't then go
"Wow, this has had a big impact on how I think".
If we all define power differently what's your definition of power?
Power is about anyone or any group of people who can get me to do
something regardless of whether I want to do it or not.
Okay
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So if I come, am I gonna expect to have those big and bold
conversations with you? I think by nature of who I am
it's going to be bold.
I think I've got to that point in life where I feel a little more comfortable
talking about things.
I want it to be a space where, because people are watching us and listening
to us, there's a space for people to process themselves and have those
conversations.
It's not all about being right.
I'm asking the questions that everyone wants to ask
but just feels stupid.
Or uncomfortable to say! Yeah! Stupid or uncomfortable.
I will ask those questions.
I want to cover power in all its glory really.
What you said before when we were walking
this is two years in the making. Is this still relevant?
And I laughed because I thought power? Yeah it will always be relevant!
But why more so now in 2021?
Oh man, it couldn't have dropped at a better time.
Parts of the world are opening. Whose got the power to stay at home?
Who hasn't?
Who is still trying to negotiate childcare?
How are we trying to negotiate who keeps a job?
How are we trying to negotiate what get's on TV?
How are we trying to negotiate what we wear and how we feel?
How has the pandemic made us feel in terms of power and not
having power?
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Amazing! I don't know how you have packed that all in between
the 27th and the 30th of September.
But you have, and we cannot wait to see it all unfold.
Thank you so much! This is Suzanne Alleyne.
We can talk about power, we will be talking about power
and we would love for to come through. Get your tickets
group tickets are online at the Barbican all over the socials.
We'll see you there!
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