Buried alive: the psychoanalysis of racial absence in preparedness/education

Theuncannycharacter of race: an exploration of UK preparedness through youth performance

“…The findings of this research resonated strongly with my earlier observational research on the ESRC project undertaken in 2009 where I used Freud's theory of the uncanny, not only to analyse the performance of race within preparedness exercises, but also to reflect on my own personal experience of being 'raced' by others during emergencies (such as during the 7 July 2005 bombings in London) and during the research process itself (Chakrabarty 2011). My use of the term 'raced' here describes the process by which one's identity becomes totalised and rendered solely in the perception of others in terms of ethnicity.…”

“…The necessity of exercises was emphasised during the time of the study as the UK dealt with swine flu, snow, and volcanic ash, all of which impacted regardless of race. However, during interviews with professionals it was acknowledged that there is an assumption of heteronormativity and homogeneity in UK preparedness that would prejudice the chances of minorities towards futurity (Chakrabarty 2011). This ethnography acknowledges the professional work of emergency planners, particularly those in West Sussex who supported the project and Operation Snowman.…”

“…This referred to my journey as a black minority ethnic (BME) researcher on the 2009Á10 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) study observing the predominantly white workplace of the UK world of preparedness via a series of observations of exercises. From this project, it became clear that within the fictional scenarios used to practise emergency, the reception of the corpses of BME characters revealed some interesting insights into differences between how white and BME characters are imagined (Chakrabarty 2011). The culmination of my work on the ESRC study was the performance ethnography Emergency Exercise 2010: Operation Snowman, a preparedness exercise held on 18 March 2010 in West Sussex, supported by the local emergency planning department.…”

“…What is unfamiliar about racism is how illogical it is to us, BME people: we know that we are humans, because we are looking from inside our bodies, through our eyes, to the outside world; we see bodies, similar but different, just the surface difference, skin; we expect to be treated equally, for others to see past the skin, inside the body; we would wish for others to treat us as they would wish to be treated. (Chakrabarty 2011) In the ESRC study in 2009 I observed familiar uniformed professionals acting out all too familiar scenes of emergency Á aircraft accident, flood, influenza Á but these familiar characters and scenes became unfamiliar, and therefore uncanny, when the unfamiliar was encountered: the reception of the BME character in close up. In Operation Snowman the theatricality of the young people playing adult professionals within a preparedness exercise opened up the opportunity to see whether the theatre application in this context would change in the hands of the traditionally excluded.…”

“…Behind all preparedness activity is the spectre of the potential or actual deaths of citizens; this is central to narrative turning points in preparedness scenarios. In an earlier paper (Chakrabarty 2011), I used the metaphor of being 'buried alive' to explore aspects of race in preparedness. This referred to my journey as a black minority ethnic (BME) researcher on the 2009Á10 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) study observing the predominantly white workplace of the UK world of preparedness via a series of observations of exercises.…”