About Us

Through a range of thought-provoking exhibitions, workshops, talks, and performances, 'Playing the Race Card' creates a town-wide conversation on race, identity and social justice.

It was started in 2020 by local Hastings resident Claudine Eccleston in response to her own experiences of this diminishing term and is led by a Working Group of community members with support from local arts charity Home Live Art.

Join us in celebrating black excellence and supporting the transformative power of art to promote social change.

One of the many incidences that led to this project

"In 2015 I spoke to an estate agent on the phone and enquired about purchasing a property in my home town, which he was happy to discuss. I was introduced to him briefly outside his office. I phoned about another property a few days later and was told the property was sold. He hung up while I was in mid sentence. However, when my husband called five minutes later, the estate agent booked him in for a viewing immediately. He had yet to meet my White husband.

We decided to bring white friends to the viewing and, predictably, the estate agent was shocked and embarrassed to see me again. Instead of apologising, he told our friends that he refused to sell to me as I had been aggressive and abusive to him in his office - a complete fabrication. I challenged him and I felt that the real reason he was treating me like that was because I was black, to which he told me “don’t play the race card.”

This Black woman have never felt that ‘a race card’ was something that existed or that I could use to my advantage, but the metaphor intrigued me, which is how this project was born.”

Claudine Eccleston, Programme Director

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Lorna Hamilton-Brown, Katy Baird (Home Live Art), Claudine Eccleston, Hannah Fox (Good Stuff in St Leonards), Maggie Scott and Deanne Nuala

Meet The Team

Founder and Director

Claudine Eccleston is a Windrush generation, British and Jamaican. An activist, artist and occasional actor, she helped set up the first Black Socialist Alliance in the 1970's. Former first female plumber, foster carer and children's lifestory practitioner.

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Playing the Race Card Director

Deanne Naula provides support to Home Live Art and all Good Stuff projects as a critical friend. She is supporting playing the race card by helping the team create strong foundations in the delivery of our ambitions and aims.

Playing the Race Card Director

Ray Manning co-owns and runs Sugarpie Honeyuns, a cafe in St Leonards which provides, food, souls and sounds.

Working Group Member

Founder of Menopause Whilst Black, Karen Arthur is a speaker and podcast host. Karen is also a fashion creative and founder of Wear Your Happy.

Home Live Art Producer

Hannah Fox is Producer at Home Live Art, a core organiser with The Hologram, and an artist researching queer economies.

Working Group Member

Mo El Kadey is a prolific British Egyptian artist, poet and father of two. He lives between London and St Leonards. Check out Mo at his place in Hastings. Mo's Lounge

Working Group Member

Maggie Scott is an artist who creates her artwork from the particularity of who she is: a black woman, a feminist, a daughter, a mother, an activist, an artist and British. Maggie has been with the project from it's conception.

Project Manager and Curator (2022 Exhibition) and Curator (2024 Exhibition) and Working Group Lurker

Lorna Hamilton-Brown is an artist, activist, educator. and founder of We Out Here. She previously lectured at De Montfort university and has an MA in knitted textiles from the royal college of art. She is an independant researcher into the black presence in crafts. F

Home Live Art Producer

Katy Baird is the artistic director of Home Live Art which facilitates Good Stuff in St.Leonards, a creative programme of activities devised and led by local residents. Home Live Arts remains Playing the Race Card's biggest supporter.

Working Group Member

Charles Osaji is the Founder and Creative Director of South Coast Squared, a platform dedicated to bringing creativity and culture to one destination. Sharing a passion for original, informed content, inspired by curiosity, led by the creative community.

Working Group Member

Sarah Buller is a St Leonards based artist, DJ and project manager for They Came Before Us, an ongoing project that seeks to amplify the history of women of colour in the UK.

Past Working Group Member & Project Manager

Leonara Manyangadze is an arts programmer and producer based in St Leonards. She was the previous Senior Programmer at Somerset House Studios in London and now works freelance supporting artists to develop and realise their projects.

Playing the Race Card Director

Anna-Maria Nabirye is a multidisciplinary artist working across performance, visual arts, social practice, theatre, film, TV and fashion. In 2020 she co-founded Afri-Co-Lab, a creative community dreaming space in St Leonards.

About Us

Meet The Team

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