Warwick Black History month: Everything you need to know

[dropcap]H[/dropcap]istorically, Black History Month is a chance to celebrate the achievements of well-known black men and women. Warwick takes this tradition a step beyond by dedicating the whole month of October to exploring Black History from past to present.
Run by Warwick Anti-Racism society, the month of October will see an array of exciting, engaging and inspiring events as part of Black History Month taking place across the UK.
Panel discussions involving exciting guest speakers will explore the intersectional themes of race, politics, social injustice, inequality and feminism.
The events involve collaborations with Warwick Anti-Sexism Society, Warwick Afro-Caribbean Society, the Black Women’s Project, NUS, the University of Birmingham ACS.
In Week 2 on Wednesday 7th, the unmissable opening night ‘Melanated Minds: The Power of Prose’ will highlight the achievements of key figures within black history.
We also will be joined by Akala, who is an English rapper, poet and journalist. Although most widely recognised for his 3 albums, 4 mixtapes, 14 singles and Acoustic EP, he also founded a music theatre production company dedicated to exploring the link between hip-hop and Shakespeare, providing a platform for young people to showcase their creative ideas.
Akala will be joining us for one of his engaging talks on African history and the importance of Black History Month.
The Lil Social on 9th October encourages new students to meet and mingle on campus, providing a support network for fresh faces and the opportunity for students to get involved with the Black Women’s Projects’ meetings throughout the year.
The first panel discussion in Week 3, Monday 12th entitled ‘Post Black: is racism dead?’,will explore the suggestion that some believe we live in a post racial society, and how disruptive it can be that artists such as Kanye, Pharrell and Common are implying that racism is dead.
The following discussion on Tuesday 13th will tackle the issue of police corruption, and on Thursday 15th the fetishizaton of the black body will be brought to the forefront; how are radicalised bodies portrayed in the media and beyond? How damaging can these representations be?
On Friday 16th, a panel will 17th will explore ‘islamophobia’, and Saturday the 17th discuss intersectional feminism, a term coined by scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw which links between gender, race and class. Does feminism need to be intersectional in order to be inclusive?
Week 4 kicks off with ‘Muhammad to Malcolm X- what did they teach?’ on Friday 19th, offering a fresh perspective on the significance of these influential figures.
On Thursday 22nd, ‘Melanin and masculinity’ will explore representations of black masculinity and whether they can be harmful. The panel will explore the compelling question ‘Why is my curriculum white?’ on Friday 23rd, aiming to dissect the issues regarding race within our education system.
The university has been the primary motor in reproducing this ideology and stereotypes regarding race, and this event seeks to challenge it in order to build genuinely inclusive and progressive places of learning.
There will be guest speakers from Oxford University, Warwick University’s own Dr Christabelle Peters, and Cecil Wright, a black professor at the University of Nottingham.
The final panel ‘Media and Blackness’ on Thursday 29th will discuss the impact of the Internet and the changing global political landscape which has made media platforms more politicised than ever. Examining how these institutions have had a vast influence on the perception of blackness will reveal how these biases have impacted the black experience across the globe.
Week 4 also includes an exhibition on mixed heritages in the library on Tuesday 27th, and a trip to the International Slavery Museum on Wednesday 28th. The finale club night at the Copper Rooms on Thursday 29th October will make sure the month ends with a bang.
Warwick Black History month is more than just a month- it’s a chance for students from all disciplines to engage in relevant debates about social issues, gaining the knowledge to expand their minds.