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Previous
events
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Educational Resource Pack Launch
On Thursday 6th December 2007 Northamptonshire Black History Association as part of its Heritage Lottery Funded education project called Shaping the Future, launched the first title in a series of five educational resource packs for schools.
The title, Walter Tull: Sport, War and Challenging Adversity, uses the story of Walter Tull to develop a thematic pack that can be used by teachers in primary and secondary schools. Three packs are to be produced one for the Key Stage 1 History Curriculum, one for the Key Stage 3 History curriculum and a cross curricular scheme of work for Key Stages 2 and 3.
In its 2004/05 Annual Report for History, the Qualifications & Curriculum Authority recognised the importance of Black British History within the school curriculum. The subject is also raised in the DfES's proposals for KS3 school history from 2008. The need for new resources in this area was also supported by research produced by Northamptonshire Black History Project and the University of Northampton in 2005 in a report titled Black is also British. more |
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| Educational Resource Pack Launch |
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Equiano Exhibition Trip
On Saturday 1 December nearly sixty NBHA members and supporters had the pleasure and privilege of visiting the Equiano exhibition at the Gas Hall, Birmingham.
The most famous and successful of the Black opponents of the British slave trade, Olaudah Equiano led an extraordinary life. The exhibition, presented jointly by the Equiano Society and Birmingham City Council, was certainly an extraordinary experience.
Our visiting party included a large group of young people from the Wellingborough African Caribbean Association’s Saturday School. Their comments included: ‘Equiano was very brave, very kind, and he seemed strong and clever as well’
Older members of NBHA also expressed their admiration for the exhibition and for Equiano the man:
If you missed the trip, you have until 13 January to catch up with this great event. Open Monday-Thursday and Saturday 10.00-17.00, the exhibition is accompanied by a book and a website (www.equiano.org).
Tickets for the next NBHA trip are on sale now. This will be to Liverpool’s Albert Dock to visit the newly opened International Slavery Museum. Adults £15 (£13 NBHA members and unwaged adults), under 16s £9. Lunch not included. |
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Talk To The Page
The second community learning project, based on language took place in October and November. The project was inspired by a focus group of elders who suggested that language would be an interesting subject. After a good deal of consultation in order to discover what might interest people the idea of a creative writing and reminiscence workshop was developed. Visiting six different locations across the county (Wellingborough, Northampton, Daventry, Oundle and Towcester), we had participants aged from two to over 65 to years old. We played games with language and inspired by African traditions and literature we created a “Call and Response” poem based on ourselves. Then we found about more about some of the amazing people that have lived in Northamptonshire such as John Anderson who escaped slavery, found himself in Corby and devised poems about them (see below). Then, we heard an extract of Olaudah Equiano’s Interesting Narrative and wrote stories about childhood memories. After that we looked at newspapers which had stories from over the last 250 years. We looked at how language and life had changed within our own life times grandparents and parents sharing stories with our children about our lives. |
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Hands On History
Rachel Silverson, Community History Officer at Northampton Museum and Art Gallery, has completed a project to create five object-handling resources as part of the ‘Hands on History’ project, using funding allocated to the museum by Renaissance East Midlands. The project has specifically created loan resources for community groups in Northamptonshire.
As part of the project, five British artists were commissioned to design and produce vessels which reflected the objects that they contained. The resources are based on several themes: the First World War, Crime and Punishment, Archaeology, Shoes Being Fit for Purpose and finally an audio resource created in partnership with Northamptonshire Black History Association.
The audio Globe was designed by the Wellingborough artist Daxa Parmar, and was created to discuss the theme of people’s experiences of moving to Northampton from their different countries of origin. This is experienced through six oral history recordings that were recorded by NBHA, and includes the experiences of people who have moved to Northampton from Bangladesh, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Liberia and Montserrat.
The resource takes the form of a globe that opens up into six segments; each segment is decorated and designed to reflect the life and experiences heard on the recordings by each of the people involved. The portable globe can be plugged in, and contains an audio speaker so that people can hear each of the recordings.
The ‘Hands on History’ project is a unique and innovative way of looking at museum loans, and is one of the first nationally to use art to interpret different elements of community history. |
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AGM 2007
The Northamptonshire Black History Association held its second Annual General Meeting on 12 July 2007.
It was attended by 27 members and 5 supporters. Ruchira Leisten (Chair) opened the meeting with a welcome to everyone and commented that 2006/7 had been a very successful with many highlights.
Monica Babb and Donna Palmer-Smith were voted in as new Directors and each gave a short speech outlining their interest and commitment to the Association. A new committee has now been elected and minutes of the meeting are available from the Doddridge Centre.
After the meeting there was a presentation from Izzy Mohammed, Community Access Officer at the Connecting Histories project in Birmingham which was very well received and prompted lively debate. |
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The 2007 Bicentenary of the Abolition of the British Slave Trade
2007 is an important year which gives us all a chance to reflect on the role of Britain in the Slave Trade. Many different organisations and government departments are focusing on the Bicentenary, which prompts NBHA to look critically at how Britain’s role has been misrepresented, and how this lack of acknowledgement affects us all.
Britain acquired enormous wealth from the Slave Trade. This is the main reason why it continued for so long and was so fiercely defended. Let us use the Bicentenary to study how racism was constructed to feed a political and economic argument, and how those racist stereotypes are still used consciously and unconsciously today.
The government is making the history of slavery a compulsory part of the National Curriculum, but this must be a well-thought-out policy and very well executed in the classroom. Teaching about the Slave Trade could perpetuate stereotypes that Black people are always victims with no control over their own lives and futures. It is important to acknowledge that there were many free Black people in Britain who fought hard to end the barbaric trade. Those who were enslaved in the Caribbean also fought for their freedom.
Slavery is not all there is to African History. It would be wrong to acknowledge this aspect without also raising awareness of the long-term history and achievements of the African continent and its people.
NBHA is working to commemorate the Bicentenary, but urges restraint in any celebrations as the 1807 Abolition Act did NOT abolish slavery. We hope that the 2007 commemorations will raise awareness of Black History locally, nationally and internationally. This will help us to build the future of NBHA , as a community organisation promoting research and education about all aspects of Black History. |
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Day Trip to Greenwich - London
SELL-OUT EVENT - Over 50 travellers of all ages, from the young to the elderly, enjoyed a fantastic day out on Saturday 28th April. The NBHA organised a day trip to Greenwich, London, in partnership with the Black Heritage Group (Deptford).
After an introduction to local black history by the Black Heritage Group and a series of very interesting short talks, the group tucked into a welcome Caribbean-style lunch. We then travelled to the National Maritime Museum, the base for a big national project called ‘Understanding Slavery’. The BHG and museum staff organised a personalised and informative programme of talks and tour within the museum.
We had lovely weather on the day and the children took advantage of the beautiful gardens in which to play.
The next trip, to Liverpool, is planned in October - make sure you get your tickets early - details will be available on this website in the coming months. |
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Show & Tell - Historic Artefacts Handling Evening - 19th December 2006
On Tuesday 19th December 2006 we hosted a SHOW & TELL evening to look at objects from the Northampton Museums ethnographic collection. Museum staff introduced some objects and invited the audience to tell stories of their usage and cultural significance.
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Heritage Lottery Fund to help shape the future
Northamptonshire Black History Association (NBHA) has been awarded a grant of £249,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to set up a new education project.
The project, called Northamptonshire Black History: Shaping the Future, will focus on the collected memories and heritage resources of the NBHA making them accessible through a range of media to a wider audience.
Click here to read more about this exciting project.
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AGM
The Northamptonshire Black History Association held its first Annual General Meeting on 13 July 2006. It was attended by 20 members and 6 supporters. The Chair, Bobb Lewis, proudly welcomed and thanked everyone, and a new committee has now been elected. After the meeting there was a performance by the Race 2 Score group, which concluded with thanks to the performers and comments by Morcea Walker and Bobb Lewis on the importance of drama to the NBHA’s work.
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Award Winners!
In April 2005, the Northamptonshire Black History Project won the coveted Libraries Change Lives Award. This national award recognises innovative and exciting work between libraries and their communities. In this case it was awarded directly to the project as a community-led organisation, with libraries as one of a number of partners in this initiative.
On 20 April, members of the team went to Birmingham NEC to collect the award which was presented by Benjamin Zephaniah who has previously been very supportive of our project.
Nigel Thomas, Chair of the judges commented that:
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| Project team receive the CILIP award from Benjamin Zephaniah |
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Discovering
your Black Roots
Acclaimed British author Paul Crooks
shared his experience of a 13 year journey to trace his African forebears. This quest took him from
north London to the Caribbean, and from there to the Gold
Coast of Africa where his story began. ‘Ancestors’,
his award winning novel, is based on this amazing story.
Attended by over 40 people, Terry Bracher, Local Studies
Librarian, also gave tips on how to search for Black roots
by looking at a range of websites and resources.
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Participants
look at family history websites
Source: Paul Bingham
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Launch
of the Oral History Archive
On Saturday 31 January 2004, the
Northamptonshire Black History Project celebrated the
official deposit of oral history interviews conducted
with members of the county’s Black communities.
The event was launched by Yvonne Brewster, founder of
Talawa Theatre Company, Britain’s leading Black
theatre company. Yvonne said “I am very flattered
to have been invited to launch this exciting event which
celebrates the contributions of Northamptonshire’s
Black communities and is a unique resource that is part
of the bigger picture of the history of Northamptonshire.”
Interviewees, their families and invited guests celebrated
this momentous occasion – the first official oral
history archive dedicated to the voices of Northamptonshires’
diverse Black communities. You can find out more about
the contributions and experiences of these people living
in the county by visiting the facilities available at
the County Record Office.
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Yvonne Brewster captivates
the audience at the launch
Source: Paul Bingham
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