Ethical Matters: People Like Us

What does it take to make it in modern Britain?

Ask a politician, and they’ll tell you it’s hard work. Ask a millionaire, and they’ll tell you it’s talent. Ask a CEO and they’ll tell you it’s dedication. But what if none of those things is enough?

A barrister who was raised on benefits and who attended some of the worst schools in the country, Hashi Mohamed knows something about social mobility. And here, he’s sharing what he’s learnt: from the stark statistics that reveal the depth of the problem to the failures of imagination, education and confidence that compound it.

We live in a society where the single greatest indicator of what your job will be … is the job of your parents. Where power and privilege are concentrated among the 7% of the population who were privately educated. Where, if your name sounds black or Asian, you’ll need to send out twice as many job applications as your white neighbour.

Wherever you are on the social spectrum: this is the essential handbook to our society’s most intractable problem. We have more power than we realise to change things for the better.

Hashi Mohamed arrived in Britain as a child refugee and is now a Barrister at No5 Chambers in London. A contributor to the Guardian, The Times and Prospect, he has explored class and mobility for the BBC. He presented Adventures in Social Mobility (April 2017) and Macpherson: What Happened Next (2019).

His book People Like Us: What it Takes to Make it in Modern Britain will be available to purchase on the day.

FURTHER INFO:

Website: https://www.no5.com/people/barristers/hashi-mohamed/planning-and-environment/

Twitter: @hm_hashi

Entry £8, £5 concessions (free to Conway Hall Ethical Society members, who should book these tickets in advance)

Event is subject to capacity, without exceptions. Space will be reserved for ticket holders.

This event is in the Brockway Room on the ground floor (Accessible. Induction loop audio). Accessibility info: conwayhall.org.uk/about/visiting-us

Category: Attractions | Talks & Lectures