The Angelou Centre defines itself as a black and minoritised-led feminist organisation. As a black and minoritised-led organisation we are managed and led by and for black and minoritised women and girls, including staff, management, and trustees. As a black feminist organisation we are committed to addressing political, economic, social inequality and discrimination through an intersectional lens in order to effect structural and institutional change. Our work retains a critical eye on the intersecting oppression that black and minoritised women and girls face at personal, community and structural/institutional levels in order to ensure that the safety, representation and voice of black and minoritised women and girls is central to the work we do. By specialist we determine that our services are primarily for black and minority women and girls.
The Angelou Centre uses the term ‘black’ and ‘black and minoritised’ (rather than BME, BAME, Refugee and BAMER) as a way to historically connect the resistance and struggle of women of colour and migrant women that has been critical to the development of the black feminist movement and to create solidarity amongst black women and girls whilst recognizing diversity and difference in experience. We do so in order to combat the oppression and abuse that women and girls face due to their race and gender as well as other intersecting identities or protected characteristics such as disability, sexuality, learning differences and gender expression.
The Angelou Centre promotes social justice for black and minoritised women and girls that supports their development and recovery whilst addressing social inequality as well as structural and institutional discrimination. To this end the Angelou Centre’s approach to addressing Violence Against Black Women and Girls (VABWG) avoids a ‘generic’ or ‘single issue’ response and contextualizes VABWG within a historical, colonialist, socio economic and political framework, recognizing that VABWG also intersects with other forms of oppression and inequality.