Little Mix stars Jade Thirlwall and Leigh-Anne Pinnock’s support of the Black Lives Matter movement could see them honoured with awards.
The singers are both tipped for a prize at the 2020 Ethnicity Awards after the way they supported the movement in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
Both have spoken out about their own experiences with horrific racist abuse and vowed to use their platforms to help and educate others.
They’re tipped for the Inspirational Personality Award following their participation in the Black Lives Matter protests in London earlier this year.
The shortlist for the annual Ethnicity Awards, held in association with official partner HSBC UK, has been announced with an array of inspirational celebrities and public figures leading the nominations.
The awards, which are returning this year against the backdrop of the international Black Lives Matter movement, will recognise individuals with a track record of working to advance equality and opportunity for Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups in society.
They have been widely praised by campaigners including HSBC UK Ethnicity Awards founder, Sarah Garrett MBE, who described the pair as “inspirational role models”.
Musicians Jorja Smith, Beverley Knight and Mabel are also nominated for accolades, as is media personality Jameela Jamil, TV presenter Reggie Yates, actress Nathalie Emmanuel and equalities campaigner Amal Fashanu. Fashanu, alongside her father, John, is the founder of the Justin Fashanu Foundation and the Black Heart clothing label which promotes activism through fashion.
Manchester United ace Marcus Rashford and Liverpool FC hero Trent Alexander-Arnold join names like Lewis Hamilton and Anthony Joshua in the running for the Sports Personality of the Year Awards. The football superstars have both been involved in charitable initiatives to support young people with Rashford being widely praised for launching a high-profile campaign to secure free school meals to children in England during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Media Moment award recognises events including Coronation Street ‘s recent racism storyline, BBC newsreader Naga Munchetty ‘s racism row, which saw 150 Black, Asian and minority ethnic broadcasters put their support behind her, and Channel 4’s The Talk – in which famous Black Britons including Tinie Tempah, shared their emotional experiences of racism.
Brands that are advocating for change including Nike, Ben & Jerry’s, John Lewis and Trapstar are amongst those shortlisted for the Brand Impact award.
A number of charities have also been nominated for awards including Black Minds Matter UK, Refugee Council and Show Racism the Red Card.
Founder of the Ethnicity Awards, Sarah Garrett MBE, said: “Jade and Leigh-Anne are inspirational role models and are very deserving of their nominations. They stood up and spoke out on behalf of Black and minority ethnic communities during a time of racial turbulence.
“All of the celebrities, public figures, business and brands on the shortlist, have all used their platforms to shine a light on the issues facing marginalised communities in what has been a pivotal and poignant year so far. All of those nominated have done important work to advance equality and promote opportunity for all against the backdrop of the international Black Lives Matter movement and are incredibly deserving of this recognition.”
Ian Stuart, CEO of HSBC UK, Official Partners of the Ethnicity Awards said: “HSBC UK is proud to once again be the lead sponsor of the Investing in Ethnicity Awards – placing an important spotlight on the work being done to ensure that all people are afforded equal opportunity, regardless of race or ethnicity.
“We understand the importance of a diverse and inclusive workforce, and know there is more we can and must do as employers to support racial equality in the workplace and across the UK more broadly. The calibre of nominations has been outstanding again this year – best of luck to all those shortlisted.”
Equalities campaigner and TV presenter, Amal Fashanu, who is nominated for the Online Impact ward, said: “The Ethnicity Awards are more important than ever before. 2020 has been an incredibly challenging year for the Black and minority ethnic communities and shows there is still so much work to do to secure full racial equality for all.”
The full 2020 Ethnicity Awards shortlist:
INSPIRATIONAL LEADER
Nivedita Krishnamurthy
Zaheer Ahmad MBE
Leroy Knowles
Kuldeep Mehmi
Karen Finlayson
Kunal Shah
Alan Higgins
Annette Byron
Debbie Ellison
Mohammed Ahmed
FUTURE LEADER
Belinda Brown
Celia Fraser
Curtis James
Karim Perrineau
Mekida Carr
Nadine Dyer
Shailesh Agarwal
Sheila Moazzami
Sofia Aslam
Tolu Oke
WORKPLACE HERO
Bennard Owusu
Bernadette Thompson
Dara Douglas
Julia Mansi
kavaljeet singh
Laith Gharib
Maria St Louis
Sadna Zaman
Shabiha Azam
Vincent Eguinlae
CHAMPION (ALLY)
Claire Wills
Colette Comerford
Faye Skinner
Jake Hobson
Kate Priestman
Louise Ebrey
Matthew Newick
Paul Flanagan
Paul Kett
Ryan Galvin
NETWORK GROUP (ERG)
African Caribbean Pioneers Network (ACPN), Rolls-Royce
BAME at Tesco
CHORD, Mitie
Fusion, ViacomCBS Networks International
Macfarlanes’ BME & friends network
Multi-Cultural Affinity Network, Balfour Beatty
Multicultural Network, NatWest Group
ONE Employee Resource Group, National Grid
Pearson’s PRIME
Unity, Standard Life Aberdeen
OUTSTANDING EMPLOYER
Allen & Overy
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Geometry
Johnson & Johnson
Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM)
Lloyds Banking Group
Macfarlanes LLP
National Grid
NatWest Group
ViacomCBS Networks International
INSPIRATIONAL PERSONALITY
Dev Patel
Jade Thirlwall
Jameela Jamil
John Barnes MBE
John Boyega
Kunal Nayyar
Leigh-Anne Pinnock
Naomi Acke
Nathalie Emmanuel
Reggie Yates
SPORTS PERSONALITY
Anthony Joshua
Bianca Williams
Dina Asher-Smith
Isa Guha
Katarina Johnson-Thompson
Lewis Hamilton
Marcus Rashford
Salma Bi
Trent Alexander Arnold
Zesh Rehman
MEDIA MOMENT
Celebs come together for ITV’s BAME COVID-19 campaign
The Black Lives Matter Movement
Channel 4′ s The Talk
Coronation Street’s Racism Storyline
Go Green for Grenfell
Love Island ’s Leanne Amaning and Mike Boateng
Michael Holding recounts racism live on air
Micheala Coel’s I May Destroy You
Naga Munchetty’s racism row
National Windrush Day
ONLINE IMPACT
Amal Fashanu
Amber Rose-Gill
Amena Khan
Emma Dabiri
Gary Thompson
Grace F Victory
Kelechi Okafor
Natasha Ndlovu
Beabadoobee
Robert Douglas
MUSIC ARTIST
Beverley Knight
Celeste
Dave The Rapper
Jorja Smith
Joy Crookes
Little Simz
Mabel
Naughty Boy
Rina Sawayama
Stormzy
POLITICAL FIGURE
David Lammy MP
Dawn Butler MP
Dr Rosena Allin-Khan MP
Humza Yousaf MSP
Marsha De Cordova MP
Munira Wilson MP
Nadia Whittome MP
Rishi Sunak MP
Baroness Sandip Verma
Sadiq Khan
BRAND IMPACT
Anastasia Beverly Hills
Argos
Ben & Jerry’s
Fenty
Glossier
Ikea
John Lewis
Nike
Palace
Trapstar
CHARITY OR COMMUNITY INITIATIVE
Anah Project
Black Minds Matter UK
Gurkha Welfare Trust
Refugee Council
ROTA (Race on the Agenda)
Runnymede Trust
Show Racism the Red Card
Sistah Space
Tell Mama UK
The Sickle Cell Society
OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO COMMUNITIES
Michael Braithewaite
Yvette Williams MBE
Aneeta Prem
Patrick Vernon OBE
Robina Qureshi
Leslie Thomas QC
Seyi Akiwowo
Paula Akpan
Shani Dhanda