Maurisa S. Coleman
I was born a daughter of the sand, sea and sun, the home of Carnival and the nation of multiculturalism, Trinidad and Tobago. I lived much of my life in London, the capital of business, the greatest city in the world as far as I am concerned. I currently work in the House of Commons in service of this great country that gave me a home and opportunities I didn’t know I could have. I love both countries equally, and equally they both made me.
When it comes to diversity, I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of a government than the one we have today. When I was a teenager, I was taught that as a woman of colour I would need to work harder to prove myself and I better get going. That is exactly what I set about doing. Is it fair? No. When will this inequality change? I don’t know. But I do know this, the women of colour before me were incredible, they were so much stronger that I could ever be because they faced demons I never will. The hard work will not stop with me, it will continue. For this, I refuse to buy into woke culture. I look at this cabinet and I see the very basis of Conservative Values. Work hard, strive high and serve your nation. Women like the Rt Hon Priti Patel and Minister Kemi Badenoch spur me on, I couldn’t have asked my party for better teachers to learn from.
With regards to hurdles in the political world, I would say it’s the boxes people expect me to be in because of how I look. In some aspects of my life I was less fortunate, I used that inequality to strive for a better place. In some aspects of my life I was very fortunate, I try with all my might to spread that fortune onto others. Like many of my peers in politics, and members of the government who are coloured, a different view of inequalities and diversity is seen as ‘traitorous to our own’. I refuse to conform to a stereotype, in fact I was always the kind of person who changed course simply because I refused to be defined by what others thought I should be.
The BAME conservative forum was launched late last year and last month we started with our panel discussions. I wish very much that this platform becomes a place of learning and support for everyone in the BAME community. My work with the East Ham Conservative Association includes the vice chairmanship for the Conservative Women’s Organisation which I hope will become a regular meet up for women in the area with learning activities, open debates, and campaigning. Nationally, I am very proud to be in my second year as Ambassador to Notting Hill Carnival where I can actively promote and support this festival that, though stemmed from my country of birth, has become a very integral part of London culture, the place I call my home.