Black History Month - reclaiming narratives
This Black History Month, we are looking at reclaiming narratives. Throughout the month of October and beyond, we will be hosting a variety of workshops, activities, and campaigns to spark conversation and ensure our black students at LJMU feel safe and represented at LJMU. We will be sharing resources, information, and updates on our campaign on both our website and social media channels, make sure you look out for updates.
Black Innovations, White Applause: The Hidden Stories
Did you know that many of the music styles you listen to and the fashions trends you follow were started by black inventors? From music and fashion to many social movements, countless ground-breaking ideas were pioneered by the black community, yet their contributions continue to be erased by the mainstream culture. Throughout this article, we’ll shine some light on the true origins of these innovations and give credit to the Black creators, who deserve it so.
Veganism and Plant Based Diets.
African Cultures have long lasting plant-based eating traditions. many figures throughout the 20th century, such as Dr. Alvenia Fulton, spread veganism around African cultures to improve health in Black communities. However, in recent years Veganism and Plant-Based diets are more so associated with white, middle-aged spaces, often ignoring its historical roots in Africa and Black culture.
(Dick Gregory called Dr. Alvenia Fulton, the greatest nutritional mind of the 20th century).
Rock and Roll.
Rock and Roll have deep roots in Rhythm and Blues, gospel and Jazz traditions that were created by African Cultures. Some artists that are foundational to the genre are Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, and Fats Domino. It is especially important to acknowledge their influence as a great majority of blues musicians had descendants from Africa who were transported to American in the slave trade and were forced to work on plantations. Enslaved people would sing work songs while working the plantations and religious spirituals in church. However, as white musicians started gaining popularity in the Rock and Roll scene, most famously Elvis Presly, they also started gaining more recognition and financial success, disregarding the influence that black musicians had on the genre.
(Richard Berry)
Streetwear Fashion
Streetwear fashion has its roots in Black and Latina communities, most famously influenced by hip-hop culture and inner-city style. Brands, such as FUBU (For Us, By Us) caters to these communities. However, most recently major white designers have adopted this style making billions, whilst continuously sidelining black designs. This is only one of the examples where mainstream media culturally appropriate Black cultures, without recognising their impact and giving credit where it is due.
(For Us, By Us logo)
MeToo Movement
Tarana Burke, a social activist, coined the phrase 'Me Too' in 2006 as part of her work with survivors of sexual abuse - her goal was to create a platform where survivors, especially women of colour, could find healing through solidarity. Her goal was to address the widespread issue of sexual assault within Black and low-income communities, groups that are often overlooked in mainstream discussions of sexual violence. However, when discussion the movement, many think of when #MeToo became a global phenomenon, in 2017. Whilst the movement led to very important conversations about sexual misconduct within industries, such as Hollywood, the voices of Black women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and low-income survivors did not always receive the same level of attention or support. This raise an overlining issue - it is a pattern seen in social movements that are initiated by black people, where they gain momentum in the media but the experiences of people of colour are often forgotten about.
(Tarana Burke)
The Black Panther Party's Social Programs
Whilst the Black Panther Party is often times recognised by their black berets and their militant stance, they actually initiated many several community-based programmes, such as free breakfast for children, educations programmes and health clinics, something that the government let the Black community down on. In recent years, many of the social programmes started by this group, have been adopted by government-ran initiatives, however, they neglected the radical political context that aimed to address systemic racism and oppression that was seen throughout the Black communities.
(the Black Panther Party)
✍ Dorota Kobylarz, campaign leader
