Pathways into Politics with Anisa Mahmood, 27 July 2021

On Tuesday 27 July, Forward Thinking held a Pathways into Politics workshop with Anisa Mahmood. Pathways into Politics is an initiative that aims to develop the political literacy, leadership, and communication skills of young British Muslims through regular engagement with political figures from a range of backgrounds.Anisa shared her experiences as a graduate interested and working in politics and provided advice and guidance for the participants based on her own career development journey. She then provided insight into her role as a parliamentary researcher, discussing her day-to-day responsibilities such as speech writing, event management, submitting parliamentary questions, liaising with the media, drafting letters and linking up casework with policy.During the discussion, participants were curious to hear more about how they can develop relevant knowledge when considering pursuing a career within politics, aside from direct job experience. Anisa recommended that they consider developing their skills further through online courses. They were also interested in what opportunities there are for career progression within politics, with Anisa describing a range of potential avenues. Speaker biography:Anisa is a Labour parliamentary researcher with expertise in human rights, foreign policy, and race and discrimination. She has worked on the Counter Extremism and Security Bill and organised human rights campaigns and is the Chief Communications Officer of the Equality Act Review Campaign. She also sits on the executive committee of the New Diplomacy Project, a foreign policy initiative which aims to develop Labour’s foreign policy for the 21st century.