Plenty is happening in Black British History- according to the Mail on Sunday, the OCR GCSE course ‘Migration To Britain c. 1000 to c. 2010’ which we heralded at WHBBH3 has been condemned as ‘pro-immigration propaganda’. The #RhodesMustFall campaign in Oxford is provoking widespread debate about Britain’s colonial legacy, as well as the significance of our public monuments; and a new BBC Two History series ‘A Black History of Britain’, presented by David Olusoga, is planning to erect over twenty specially designed ‘BBC Black History plaques’ to record and celebrate people and events that are pivotal to this history.
Following the success of our previous events in London and Liverpool, we would like to invite you to the fourth of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies’ Black British History Workshops at Watershed, Bristol, on Thursday 7th April 2016. The Bristol workshop will be co-sponsored by the University of the West of England (UWE) and the Institute of Commonwealth Studies.
The aim of the series is to foster a creative dialogue between researchers, educationalists (mainstream and supplementary), artists and writers, archivists and curators, and policy makers. It seeks to identify and promote innovative new research into the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK, and facilitate discussion of the latest developments in the dissemination of Black British history in a wide variety of settings including the media, the classroom and lecture hall, and museums and galleries, thus providing an opportunity to share good practice.
At this fourth workshop, we would like to open the floor to presentations on any aspect of Black British History. As we will be in Bristol, local and regional or family histories from Bristol and the South-West would also be welcome.
The workshop will be divided into three panels, followed by a round-table discussion. Each panel will consist of three presentations lasting for 15-20 minutes.
Individual Papers
We would be delighted to hear from researchers, educationalists, artists, writers, archivists and curators or others interested in offering a presentation. Please submit a title and a brief description of your presentation either in writing (in which case, of no more than 300 words) or in some other form (for example a clip or podcast) to Dr. Miranda Kaufmann at miranda.kaufmann@sas.ac.uk by 26th February 2016.
Complete Panels
In addition, we would be happy to consider proposals for a complete panel. The panel should have a coherent unifying theme, and the proposal should include the abstracts of three related presentations and the names and affiliations of the presenters. We would also be interested in providing A-level students, undergraduates or graduate students with an opportunity to give presentations on projects relating to Black British History.
Registration
The day will run from 11am to 6.00pm, followed by a Reception. There will be a registration fee of £20 (£10 for students/unwaged) to cover the costs of lunch and refreshments. A limited number of travel bursaries will be available to independent speakers on application.
Registration for the workshop is now open. Book your place here.
The third ‘What’s Happening in Black British History?’ workshop (WHBBH3) took place in Senate House, University of London, on Thursday, 29 October 2015.
The series overall aims to foster a creative dialogue between researchers, educationalists (mainstream and supplementary), archivists and curators, and policy makers. It seeks to identify and promote innovative new research into the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK. The third workshop was designed primarily to explore different approaches to teaching Black British History and how to foster a greater interest in the field.
As with previous workshops WHBBH3 received very positive feedback in the evaluation forms: ‘enjoyable and enlightening’, ‘a most stimulating day’, and ‘the blend of vocational, academic and community learning is enriching’.
The opening keynote address was delivered by Eric Huntley, a pioneering political and social activist and radical book publisher, whose life’s work is currently being celebrated at the critically acclaimed No Colour Bar Black British Art in Action 1960 -1990 exhibition at the Guildhall Art Gallery. Eric read from his memoirs, and then went on to discuss the setting up of Bogle-L’Ouverture Publications and Bookshop in the 1960s, painting an insightful picture of the dynamic African-Caribbean community in London at that time. His address was warmly received by the audience and set the tone for the discussions to follow.
The remainder of the day was divided into three panels. The first sought to challenge the conventional narratives. Catherine Johnson discussed how to engage young readers through fiction. Ryan Hanley moved beyond the careworn themes of slavery and abolition to showcase the great variety of voices within eighteenth-century Black British writing, and David Killingray concluded with a critical assessment of the current state of Black British historical scholarship (which you can read here).
The second panel focused on teaching Black British History. Martin Spafford reported the exciting news that, from this September, migration will be offered as a topic on OCR and AQA GCSE courses. Dema Wonga of Narrative Eye and the Justice2History team both gave us insights into their experiences of communicating Black British History in the classroom.
The final panel examined ‘New Perspectives on the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries’. Jeffrey Green gave us some vignettes from his research into Black Victorians. Jan Marsh gave a curatorial perspective from her experiences of working with Black British portraits. Advolly Richmond recast the Reverend Thomas Birch Freeman, more usually known for his missionary work, as a pioneering botanist.
The day closed with a reflective plenary session. Overall, WHBBH3 showcased exciting new developments in research, particularly in the arenas of teaching and education. The event was well attended by individuals with a wide range of knowledge and interests, and generated a great deal of lively discussion. It was clear from the debate that there are many more aspects of Black British History still to be researched, and plenty more questions to answer.
Do you have something to contribute? Send us a proposal for WHBBH4!
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