This Committee, CMEAC, is directly responsible to the General Synod as far as policy implications for minority ethnic groups within the Church and the wider community. However CMEAC pursues its work in close collaboration with the various bodies reporting to the Archbishops? Council. The principal task of CMEAC is to encourage and engage participation at every level of the Church of England among its Minority Ethnic worshippers. It is the primary point of contact in the Church of England for advice and resources regarding ethnic difference and marginalisation, advocacy and racial justice. A number of Diocesan Link Persons (DLP), monitor the work of CMEAC throughout the 43 dioceses by assisting the bishops and their dioceses in developing diocesan-wide strategies for combating racial bias within the church. Through its Vocations and Youth sub-groups, it seeks to develop and empower minority ethnic Anglicans and help them to realise their vocations within the Church whether in the ordained or lay ministries.
Over the past decade some of CMEAC „s work include:

Valuing Cultural Diversity in Rural Primary Schools (1998)
This was a pilot project conducted by Cambridge and Durham Universities to investigate how church primary schools in rural areas celebrated cultural diversity. The research set out to examine and to discover how rural schools were responding to the issues of racial awareness; to find out what resources were currently available and identify gaps in existing materials; determine what assistance teachers needed to address this issue ; develop support for teachers and produce relevant materials.

Called To Act Justly:
A Challenge to Include Minority Ethnic People in the Life of the Church of England (2003). This report follows on from Called to Lead: A Challenge to Including Minority Ethnic People (GS Misc 625), an initial response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report. Called to Lead indicated five themes for education and training; young people; vocations; nurturing new leaders; police and society, but an actual picture relating to minority ethnic Anglicans was unclear therefore no clear recommendations were made.
When CMEAC began to visit the dioceses more information become available therefore Called To Act Justly could go further to try and deal with the prevailing culture within the Church of England.
Through its education sub-group CMEAC developed a programme of training in racial awareness/cultural diversity for clergy, staff and the laity.

Clergy Audit (2005)
In 2002, 3.2% of the electoral roll was recorded as being of minority ethnic origin. From the diocesan visits, CMEAC found that the number of minority ethnic Anglicans was greater than this number, the reason being because minority ethnic Anglicans were not always appearing on the electoral roll of parish churches. The audit aimed to encourage both clergy and minority ethnic Anglicans to be more proactive to ensure that all worshippers were offered a chance to appear on the roll.

Present and Participation (2006) Report to General Synod
Comprising less than 3% of its membership, minority ethnic people are under represented on General Synod. This means that their contributions and voices may not always be heard or taken into account in the Church?s highest decision-making body. CMEAC has produced a booklet to inform candidates about General Synod structures, the election process, responsibilities and expectations. However, nothing will change unless Minority Ethnic adults and young persons decide to stand for election and are properly supported.

Making our Mark – 200 years of African Enslavement (2007)
CMEAC marked the Bicentenary of the Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade on Saturday 24th March 2007 when almost 4,000 people gathered at two London start points - Whitehall and Clapham and walked through the capital to join together at Kennington Park for an act of worship that brought together dance, drama and music. Participants were led by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York alongside other Church leaders. A website was set up to collect responses to the Walk of Witness from those who took part, A Schools Pack with a DVD is being prepared for distribution throughout Church of England schools.

Finally, in 2006 CMEAC undertook a major structural review in order to forecast future needs of minority ethnic Anglicans within the Church of England. Results and recommendations have been published and can be found on the Church of England/CMEAC website.

Canon Linda Ali