This Black History Month is “Standing Firm in Power and Pride”, a tribute to the resilience, strength and unwavering commitment to progress that defines the Black community across the globe.

Here at Motorsport UK, our programme Race for Diversity aims to increase the participation and involvement of 14 to 24-year-olds from Black, Asian, minority ethnic groups and economically disadvantaged backgrounds through inspirational STEAM interventions, in motorsport.

As we work towards supporting diversity in paddocks across the UK, Motorsport UK caught up with Evelkah Powell, Race for Diversity Manager to find out how Black History Month is celebrated across motorsport during October and beyond…

Why is it important to stand firm in your pride when working in the automotive or motorsport sector?

I think it’s all about being confident… In the motorsport industry, especially for people from underrepresented backgrounds, they feel like they don’t have a space already and so they tend to discount or disqualify themselves. By showcasing that you do bring something different, that you bring something that contributes to the wider mission, be it innovative or can lead the way in technology, will enable them to have a voice and stand firm in what they believe in.

You’ve now been in post for 18 months, how do you feel Race for Diversity has progressed and developed as a programme?

I think we are on a good trajectory in terms of enabling and empowering our young people so that they feel they have a space and can take up space in the industry, we have done a lot of activity to help inspire young people to explore the different pathways and opportunities in motorsport, as opposed to focusing on stereotypical routes into the sport and I think empowering them to think more boldly and broadly in terms of their aspirations has really helped that.

A lot of the schools use the programme as a way to enable their students to aspire to more and to believe in more and ultimately give them an opportunity where they can thrive.

How do you think that Motorsport UK can take these learnings and support equality in our organisation and beyond?

Motorsport UK has the ability to be the leader and example within the industry and helping to change the narrative. We have the ability, we have the reach, we have such great pools of communities of people that we can take the learnings from the Race for Diversity programme, in particular around engaging with underrepresented talent, the language that we use… and also to help clubs to diversify their reach, so that we can diversify our licence holders so that we can be even more inclusive as a sport.

Find out more about our Race for Diversity programme and keep up to date on our Instagram