Black History Month 2020 Archive

2020 has highlighted the difference between being actively anti-racist rather than non-racist and the macroaggressions that Black people face on a daily basis, something I do continue to personally experience. It’s exhausting. The first stage is understanding these points and then thinking about what you can do to address it. An enormous amount of work has been done to change the curriculum; to enable a wider focus and to embrace a different perspective but there’s still lots of work to be done and this celebration helps to recognise this work is still ongoing and we recognise its importance. I am Black 365 days a year, and Black contribution should be recognised each and every day. Our history is always there, it’s always accessible.

We are proud to celebrate the achievements of our colleagues and students - while committing to ensure we centre and amplify Black voices 365 days a year. History shows us the equalities that have been won and the advancements that have been made but it also shows us where there is still work to be done.

This year has seen a renewed sense of determination and vigour to ensure more change is on the way. We know the diversity of our colleagues and students is one of our great strengths and as we work to decolonise the curriculum, we add our weight behind this hope for a better future. We celebrate, learn and grow as we move through the month - and beyond.

The BME Staff Network, welcomes Black History Month as an occasion to reflect, recall and remind everyone of the many wondrous and brave contributions Black people have given to the world, over a millennia. Not forgetting, the violence of slavery that Africans endured for over 400 years. At a time when Black voices and their lived experiences have once again been hurled under the spotlight of international injustice, Black people continue to draw on their resolve, resilience and resistance against an enduring and unforgiving oppression. Yet, the spirit of the ancestors, continue to shine on, across the world, with a glow of ‘Black Brilliance’. Lest we forget, Black History is also British history.

At Your Students' Union we are committed to celebrating the diversity of our Black students on campus. As we celebrate Black History Month, there has never been a better time to uplift and celebrate our diverse Black communities across the Coventry University group. As we shine a light on diverse cultures, traditions and contributions, we also acknowledge the role quality education in a conducive environment plays in transforming lives, and we commit to making our campus as equitable as possible. We make a commitment today to continue this far beyond Black History Month. Going forward, equity and diversity will not just be our watchword, we will have difficult, yet crucial conversations backed up by action.

Black History Month (BHM) is an opportunity to stand in respectful solidarity with Black communities who want their human rights to be respected and upheld. May this year’s BHM offer us opportunities to celebrate whilst enhancing our critical awareness about racialised macro- and micro-aggressions. As an Institute for Higher Education, we need to continue to educate ourselves on how to overcome institutional racism. Daily acts of solidarity and moment-by-moment decisions in the workplace can help advance racial justice and an inclusive diversity. Ultimately, BHM is an invitation to decolonise our minds to enable a more peaceful and just world.

2020 will go down in history as a year of global upheaval, culturally, politically and economically. A global pandemic and the public lynching of African Americans by the police across the USA have caused the world to focus, belatedly, upon racial oppression and racial disparities within and between nation states and the historical origins of racial hierarchies. Black History Month provides an opportunity to engage with the history of the African presence and the experience of the African diaspora in Britain in the last couple centuries. How is that diaspora which is clearly ‘here to stay and here to fight’ being facilitated to help build the future of multi-ethnic Britain?

Video

• Filmmaker Ken Fero: ‘There are serious problems here in terms of deaths in police custody’
• Celebrating Music Month with the showing of Rudeboy the 50th anniversary film by Trojan Records: 'Return of the Rudeboy', Cory Barrett

Publications

• From Slavery to Civil Rights: On the streetcars of New Orleans 1830s - Present, Hilary McLaughlin-Stonham, Associate Lecturer Coventry University Online
  • Donegal academics new book adds to Black History Month discussions, Donegal Daily
• Let's Talk: African Caribbean Women, Mothering Motherhood, and Well-Being, Geraldine Brown, Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience
• The UK Higher Education System and the Black Experience, Gurnam Singh, Coventry University
• Historic Context of African and Caribbean Christianity in Britain, Bishop Dr Joe Aldred
• HOTFOOT Spring 2020, HOTFOOT Online is One Dance UK’s bi-annual publication focusing on dance of the African Diaspora (DAD) and provides a platform for critical debate.

Interviews

• Simeon Green Interview - Radio Plus
• Geraldine Brown interviewing Robin Thompson
• Rev Dr Carver Anderson Interview - Radio Plus

Presentations

• Black Men, Mental Health & Oppressions, Yvette Brown (Coventry University PhD based at the University of Wolverhampton)
• Towards a Practical Theology for Effective Responses to Black Young Men Associated with Crime, Rev Dr Carver Anderson, CEO Bringing Hope
• Decolonising Research, Geraldine Brown, Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience
• Performance Driven Data Dissemination, Dr Martin Glynn, Birmingham City University
• An exploration of the disproportionate number of tenancy failures amongst African and African Caribbean males, Geraldine Brown, Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience
• Why Black History? Bishop Dr Joe Aldred
• Black Men’s Desistance: The Racialisation of Crime & Criminal Justice Systems & its Impacts on the Desistance Process, Dr Martin Glynn
• Black communities, mental health and the "Criminal Justice" system, Paul Grant, University of Wolverhampton 
• Researching in Secure Settings, Geraldine Brown, Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience
• Suffering in Silence: Black British young women and their well being, Dr Victoria Showunmi, Institute for Education University College London

Professor Gus John recommends...

• Origins of Black History Month, Akyaaba Addai-Sebo Interview
• Where now for Black History Month, Prof Gus John

Arinola Adefila recommends...

• How Black Lives Matter Is Changing What Students Learn During Black History Month
• And a link to an article on culturally responsive teaching
• And the Black history month UK website

Fiona Secondino recommends...

• Slay in your Lane: The Black Girl Bible – Yomi Adegoke, Elizabeth Uviebinene
• Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race - Reni Eddo-Lodge
• Taking Up Space – Ore Ogunbiyi, Chelsea Kwakye
• White Fragility – Robin DiAngelo
• Natives – Akala

2019

Environment Matters to Us Too! Communities, 'Race' and Class: The Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience (CAWR) hosted a special event to mark Black History Month. The event will drew attention to what is rendered visible when ‘the environment’ is defined broadly and embedded within wider systems of power and oppression. The session considered struggles that have led to racial advances witnessed in the UK and encouraged thinking about ways in which we can continue to work together for improving health and wellbeing outcomes for Black communities and an inclusive understanding of the environment.

Lecturers film on C4 for Black History Month

A celebration of Black musicians. To celebrate Black History Month, The Hub will be dedicating their playlist for the day to works by Black musicians, for more information please click here

To Celebrate Black History Month, the Students' Union are holding a Cultural Night on Friday 25 October at Fargo Village from 7-10pm. The evening will also play host to the BHM Awards, with categories including Shooting Star Award, Community Campion and Staff Recognition.

Changing the Narrative, Panel Event
When: 24 October 2019
Time: 18.00-20.00

Black History Month: update on the winners of the BHM awards

Run4Life Fundraising event 
When: April 29th 2019
Info: Fundraising event for Powerhouse Community Network which supports people who suffer from sickle cell disease. Sickle cell disease is particularly common in people with an African or Caribbean family background. CU London have supported this annual event by hosting the event at our Dagenham campus for the past three years. Although the run has been cancelled this year due to pandemic, they are still fundraising for this charity.

BME Staff Network Meeting - Tuesday, 11th June 2019

BME Staff Network Meeting - Thursday, 26th September 2019

2018

Black History Month 2018 Seminar Series: Speaking Out Against Racism in the University Space

Curating Coventry: Curious Boys Club