White Director given role intended for BAME candidates sparks backlash

A White theatre director - who has been given a job intended for BAME candidates - is at the centre of a debate around racial identity.

Anthony Ekundayo Lennon is among four candidates who won a paid traineeship as a “theatre practitioner of colour” to “deliver a comprehensive talent programme of talent development for future BAME leaders”.

Despite being born to White Irish parents, Lennon previously claimed he has gone through the struggles of being a Black man.

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According to an ebook he wrote ten years ago, his high cheekbones and curly hair lead people to seeing him as mixed race and therefore he was the target of racial slurs.