Naseem Khan

Naseem Fatima Khan (11 August 1939 – 8 June 2017) was a British journalist, activist, cultural historian and educator who was influential in effecting policy change about cultural diversity.

She wrote a report entitled The Arts Britain Ignores in 1976, which was the first major study highlighting the integral part played in UK culture by black and Asian artists, and also that year she founded the Minority Arts Advisory Service (MAAS). As a journalist, she was one of the first theatre reviewers for Time Out magazine, and later wrote regularly for publications including the New Statesman, The Guardian and The Independent.

She was appointed an OBE in the 1999 Birthday Honours for services to cultural diversity.

In 2000, Khan co-edited with Ferdinand Dennis the anthology Voices of the Crossing: The Impact of Britain on Writers from Asia, the Caribbean and Africa.

Personal life Khan married journalist John Torode in 1974 and they had two children, Amelia and George, before separating amicably in 2000.