As we approach Christmas, cries of “it’s behind you” are ringing out again in theatres all across the country as pantomime season returns for the first time in 2 years because of the Covid pandemic.
The British pantomime tradition is one of pure escapism, with its colourful characters, song and dance, and jokes designed to make us groan. Like marmite, you might love it or hate it depending on your tolerance for slapstick, pantomime dames and a loud, screaming audience.
Whatever your view, pantomime taps into deeply held emotions, to the human story. In essence, it presents a tale of good winning out of evil, hope triumphing over adversity with a good bit of danger and despair thrown in along the way. It reflects life in exaggerated form, although not so exaggerated for some in our society.
So, what has this got to do with inequality?
Well, in the midst of the first Covid lockdown in spring 2020, I was on a Zoom board meeting with colleagues from Result CIC, a non-profit I advise that helps those marginalised in society to reach their potential. We were talking about the impact of Covid – on ourselves, on the organisation and on society as a whole. After some early media claims that Covid could be the ‘great leveller’ because a virus can infect anyone, the opposite was quickly, and unsurprisingly, becoming clear. Covid was having a hugely disproportionate impact on the marginalised and excluded in our society; those at the heart of Result CIC’s work. There was a greater need than ever for what Result CIC does.
At that meeting, I talked about a viral video I had seen on social media, The $100 Race. The video is far from perfect. It oversimplifies a complex set of issues in trying to explain inequality, privilege and class in under 5 minutes. But its core message hit a chord with me.
The premise of the video is this. Many people start ahead of others in life, not because of anything they have done, their talents or the decisions they have made, but simply because of their personal circumstances, their background, the cards they were dealt.
In the same way, those who face extra obstacles to making progress in life, those who start from behind, aren’t typically in that position because of anything they have done, because of their own decisions or a lack of drive or talent. They are there simply because of their personal circumstances, their background, the cards they were dealt too. And those cards can relate to many things: ethnicity, disability, gender, sexuality, socio-economic background and more.
The video shows a diverse group of young people lined up in a field for a running race. The runners are told that whoever crosses the line first will win $100. But before the race begins, the organiser asks the participants to take 2 steps forward towards the finishing line if they meet certain criteria. It’s two steps forward for someone who grew up in a family that didn’t have to worry about how bills would be paid. It’s another two steps forward for someone whose family never had to think about how they would put food on the table. The list of circumstances that gives some runners two steps forward continues until, before the starter gun has even been fired, participants are spread right across the field. Some are almost at the finishing line before the race begins.
We see the expressions on the participants’ faces as they take in the situation. Some at the front of the field show signs of embarrassment at their unmerited advantage in the race. Some of those at the back exhibit understandable frustration and anger. One or two turn away not wanting to participate at all.
The message of the video is clear. As individuals and as a society, we can have a tendency not to think about those behind us. Most often, we look towards those ahead in the race. We measure ourselves against those we judge to be more successful. Whatever we achieve, we conclude that it’s entirely because of our own talents and efforts, not where we started in comparison to others.
I am certainly guilty of this, which is probably why the video struck such a chord with me. There’s nothing wrong with aspiration, of course, having successful role models or challenging ourselves to do better. Nor is there anything wrong with celebrating when we achieve something significant. But in doing so, we can forget to look behind us to those who need extra support to succeed.
So, as we enter the pantomime season and hear those repeated cries of “it’s behind you”, let’s turn around and find out who is there.
Let’s do a bit less measuring of ourselves against those we think are more successful, who seem to have more than we do.
Let’s measure our success by what we have done to help those facing challenges and obstacles we don’t, by what we have done to help those feeling marginalised or excluded to overcome these hurdles and reach their full potential.
That’s what Result CIC has at the heart of its mission. It’s why I’m so proud of the work they do and of being able to play a small part in their efforts as one of their advisers.