During the month of October, the University of Westminster held numerous events to celebrate Black History Month and the seventh anniversary of the University’s Black and Minority Ethnic Network. With a mix of panel discussions, art and music, the month brought together the Westminster community and beyond to learn from each other and celebrate Black heritage.
On 7 October, Westminster welcomed Honorary Doctorate Levi Roots to reveal one of the University’s new permanent wall murals in celebration of its flagship programme Black History Year (BHY). The wall is one of two murals around the University’s campuses designed to mark BHY, an innovative initiative that celebrates Black history, stories, lives, politics, creativity and achievement all year round. Roots’ portrait features on the wall alongside other notable Black Honorary Doctorates from the University, including The Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon and Billy Ocean.
This was followed by a BHY Celebrates event on 9 October that commemorated the richness and significance of Black History Month through music. The evening was filled with vibrant displays of talent that reflected the kaleidoscope of the Black experience.
On 15 October, Westminster held an In Conversation event titled Westminster Conversations: Celebrating Agitation and Allyship. Mediated by Samir Pandya, Reader in Architecture and Director of Global Engagement, the event celebrated seven years of Westminster’s Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Network and brought together the two founding Co-Chairs of the University of Westminster’s BME Committee: Professor Dibyesh Anand, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement and Employability, and Dr Deborah Husbands, Reader in Race and Sociocultural Psychology. Together they reflected on the contextual factors that led to the inception of the Network, key milestones and challenges during its evolution, and their thoughts on current urgencies and future trajectories. Although both speakers said they hope for a more inclusive environment in the coming decade, they emphasised that agitation and allyship will remain crucial to driving lasting change.
Dr Deborah Husbands said: “The BME Network has been a journey of challenges and triumphs as we bravely surf a world that is, at times, racially turbulent. Such experiences have given us the courage and drive to continue moving forward as a community of colleagues, united in the fight against social and racial inequalities.”
On 23 October, the University held another In Conversation event titled Westminster Conversations: An Acumen Eugenics in Society Conference. Led by award-winning historian and journalist Dr Shantella Sherman, the event gave a space to investigate how 100 years of eugenic laws have shaped perception and how people can confront those ideals today.
Throughout the month, Dr Mykaell Riley, Director for the Black Music Research Unit (BMRU) and Principal Investigator for Bass Culture Research at the University of Westminster, hosted a weekly series on Virgin Radio. Each episode explored a different million-selling Black British artist who has shaped music and popular culture across the UK. Airing every Sunday at 7pm, Riley’s show honoured a variety of Black British artists, including Soul II Soul, Corrine Bailey Rae and Leona Lewis.
Dr Riley also featured on two panels this October. The first was as part of a screening of the BMRU’s documentary Bass Culture, which was shown at the Garden Cinema in Covent Garden. The screening was part of Camden Council's Black History Season which honours the achievements and contributions of Black people across Camden and the UK. The second was at the Music as Resistance panel at the Triangle of Unity Festival. Hosted by Jacqueline Springer, Curator of the Africa and Diaspora: Performance exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum, Dr Riley spoke on a panel that discussed how music can create social change.
Mykaell Riley speaking at Bass Culture screening event
Paula Cadenhead, Black History Year Programme Manager, said: “Whilst we use every month at Westminster to mark Black History with the respect and importance it deserves, in October we use this time to really celebrate Black history and our Black Westminster community, with a real focus on our amazing talented students and colleagues.”
These events directly contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 4: Quality Education and 10: Reduced Inequalities. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Find out more about upcoming Black History Year events.
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