You BME Rep, Renée Landell, talks us through why Black History Month remains pertinent and necessary to this day.
Debated and disparaged, Black History Month has been a topic under much speculation and scrutiny for almost a century. Why do we need a month to reverence the Afro-Caribbean heroes and heroines?—the ones who radically fought for the physical and mental emancipation of Black people within the Western world and even in their own homeland.
“Wasn’t slavery, like, 100 years ago?” I hear the critics say. The answers to such questions can simply be found in the current socio-political climate. Headlines with recurring stories about ‘Windrush’, ‘police brutality’, the ‘modern day slave-trade in Libya’; and such the list goes on. Indeed, the Western world is a nation still saturated in the culture and paraphernalia of racial conflict.
Celebrating Diversity At Royal Holloway
As a university we honour this wonderful month which reverences and remembers the legacies of black people; we support the active revolutionaries who continue to enforce racial equality and we recognize and appreciate all African and Caribbean students, here, at Royal Holloway.
As your BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) Officer, I particularly want to welcome you all and encourage you to be the best version of ‘you’ possible. The only boundaries are the ones you choose to see and conform to and yet by the mere fact that you have made it this far to higher education (an achievement to which the generations before us did not have the opportunity) I presume you already know this. Congratulations! But, remember this is not a privilege, you are here because you deserve to be and the possibilities remain endless.
Black History Month Events
Black History Month at Royal Holloway will be even bigger and better this year! From a Windrush panel to a Gospel concert, the BME Network aims to cover a range of important issues and explore wonderful features of black culture. Additionally, other amazing events/initiatives will be run by the ACS (African Caribbean Society) and WOCC (Women of Colour Collective). All events are INCLUSIVE! Whether Black or non-black, male, female, or non-binary, undergraduate or postgraduate, we want to see you there!
For more information or for any enquires about Black History Month, the BME Network, ACS, WOCC, or any general comments or concerns, feel free to email bme@su.rhul.ac.uk
We’re also on social media:
INSTAGRAM: rhul_bme
FACEBOOK: @RHULBMENETWORK
Renée Landell // Black, Minority and Ethnic Representative