Catalogue Number
NMLH.2025.26.3
Object Name
poster
Title
'What makes you think they're not equals? NUPE. Racism. We're fighting it. Join us!'
Place
UK
People
NUPE (National Union of Public Employees), UNISON
Description
A black poster with white text which reads: 'What makes you think they're not equals? NUPE. Racism. We're fighting it. Join us!' In the centre of the poster there is a large black and white photo of five babies in white nappies. The photo has been coloured in such a way that the races of the babies is not clear, to add to the anti-racist message of the poster.
This poster was designed by NUPE (the National Union of Public Employees), advertising the union's participation in anti-racist campaigning on behalf of their membership. A trade union is a democratic organisation made up of workers. Organising collectively as a union gives workers a stronger position when challenging employers or the government to change unfair or dangerous working practices, raise wages, or settle grievances between individual workers and their employer.
As this poster demonstrates, unions also hold political stances on issues that aren't specifically about workplace conditions (although racism in the workplace does impact workplace conditions). These policies are voted for by their membership at annual conferences. NUPE held strong anti-racist and anti-fascist positions, and would participate in protests against discrimination, like the case discussed on the poster. In 1993 NUPE joined with two other trade unions to form UNISON, the UK's largest public service union, which still participates in anti-racist and anti-fascist protests and advocacy for global majority workers to this day.
Multimedia
