October: Black History Month

[Ibtisam]

For too long, the black community's contribution has been ignored. This year, Channel 4 has become involved in trying to raise the profile of Black History month.

 

Who is the better known? Emperor Augustus or Septimius Severus? Florence Nightingale or Mary Seacole? There's no contest. Augustus and Nightingale get star billings in most popular histories, while Severus and Seacole are at best consigned to the footnotes. Of course, it's a complete coincidence that both were black. Just as it's a complete coincidence that 1919 is engraved as a turning point in Britain's democratic history as the year Nancy Astor became the first woman MP, while 1892, the year Dadabhai Naoroji became the first Asian MP, is largely ignored.

 

Black history is largely neglected in British schools. There are documents revealing that black people have lived in this country since Roman times, but all that most schoolchildren hear about is the slave trade of the 18th and 19th centuries. Modern black history is equally sketchy. Who would know that black and Asian troops played a significant part in both world wars by reading a popular history? Certainly not the armed forces themselves, who couldn't be bothered to invite black veterans to the D-Day celebrations in 1994.

 

Even when blacks are mentioned, the tone is often disparaging. Colonel Ismail Khan, who served with the Indian army in Malaya, remarked in 1995 that "there is always the sense that the Indian troops weren't quite as good as the British, and writers have tended either to ignore their efforts or to condemn them by attacking their fighting spirit."

 

For the past few years, there have been some attempts to redress the balance by designating October Black History month. Yana Morris, deputy head of Rushey Green primary school, Lewisham, has been a keen participant at her current and previous schools. "As a black woman educated in this country, I knew all about Henry VIII," she says, "but I learned next to nothing about my own culture's contribution to history. So I now make a point of creating displays and holding assemblies on black history. It's not just the children we have to educate, it's their children, too."

 

But despite the best efforts of teachers like Ms Morris, Black History month has failed to make more than a token impression. This year, though, Channel 4 is getting in on the act. As well as broadcasting a series of programmes on black history in its Untold season, it has launched an ambitious project to create a black history map of this country. "We are inviting all schools to explore the local black history of their area," says Simon Fuller, education director of Channel 4 Learning. "We're looking for every thing from oral histories of family and friends to archived records. By April next year, we hope to have a huge website of information that documents Britain's history and can be used as a learning resource in schools."

Sam Walker, director of the Black Cultural Archive in London, welcomes Channel 4's initiative. "We've made some serious progress getting our message across to schools," he says, "but we're limited by our size and financial resources. It would be nice to be able to make our archive available to a wider audience." But no one is treating the project as a foregone success

 

"With the extra focus on reading and numeracy, history has been put on the back burner in many schools," says Elena Mauro, a London teacher, "so Black History month may not be a priority." Given time constraints, many schools whose intake is overwhelmingly white may not even see why they should bother at all.

This would be a major mistake, Ms Mauro believes. "Ultimately, it's not black or white history," she says, "it's everyone's history."

 

 

Source:

By John Crace writing for The Guardian

[Malika]

^It's about who decides what is taught in school and what is not taught.The curriclum,as currently is a product of politicians,until politicians see the significance of "it's everyone's history" nothing is going to change.

 

But,then again is history of every society based on being biased to themselves?

 

For example,when I was in school learning about the history of East Africa,the emphasis was very much on the conquests of the uprisals then defeat of our societies against the colonialism etc etc

 

At home,stories of the Sayid and other brave men whom resisted the occupation of colonial powers were fascinating and helped in many ways to form a sense of pride that I carried around..

 

So is the British history about,maintaning and sustaining the once powerful, proud British Empire?

[BOB]

Salam Aleikum W.W

 

 

Someone once said 'its whiteman's world' and i thoroughly agree whoever that person was...for in my eyes blacks got no place in this world unless they want to serve their white master and as far as I'm concerned that is exactly what we do and to be honest we're quite good at it actually...but wether we would admit that or not is entirely a different animal...

 

 

...and that's my contribution towards this year's Bisha Madoow....

 

 

Peace, Love & Unity.

[SayidSomal]

At home,stories of the Sayid and other brave men whom resisted the occupation of colonial powers were fascinating and helped in many ways to form a sense of pride that I carried around..

Thank you very much - it is good to know i am being appreciated.

 

 

on serious side - i for one played my part in ensuring that black history month is NOT just about the carribean or afro-american civil rights movement in my borough.

 

so far this month i already recieved 27 emails all pleading for my expertise in Horn of African (Somalia) history. all beacuse of couple twilight insets i have delivered last year in which i simple exposed the red faces of so called humanities teachers. you lot should have seen their faces when i put up the quiz, some where horrified, others felt ashamed and some just ducked.

[Malika]

^So its back to educating the educators. Most of teachers teach subjects they do not have expertism in anyway,iskabaa daa teach about history or religion that one only had learned through the curriclum guide.

 

BOB,a Black man has his place,but by allowing even after how many years after Independence to still be, bound by the standards of our masters then we will forever be their slaves in all matters.

[The Zack]

I thought February was the Black History Month. At least that is when it is here in the U.S. maybe you guys have your own black month.

[SayidSomal]

^^even worse! - trust americans - they made it the shortest month in the calender; the black history month.

 

i think black history should be just taught at one particular month at all - it should be impended in the curriculum across the spectrem. Also the same for Islam and Asian history is well.

 

Malika - re your first paragraph comments - they are so true. re second paragrahp - speak for yourself and Bag Of Bones - i the son of somalia do not have master - i am the master and i don't answer to no one except Allah.

[Paragon]

Frankly dear, I don't give a damn.

[Paragon]

Frankly dear, I don't give a damn.

[Paragon]

Frankly dear, I don't give a damn.

[Abaay Heylay]

October is Islam history month in Canada, which was aprroved this year (alhamdullilah, and February is black history month in Canada and in America.

[peasant]

Black month....Asian month.....Gay people month.. Jewish Month.!

 

Remember people we only have 12 months in a year.

[BOB]

Originally posted by Malika:

BOB,a Black man has his place,but by allowing even after how many years after Independence to still be, bound by the standards of our masters then we will forever be their slaves in all matters.

Malika...My point exactly...look around you and tell me what you see! Africa is the RICHEST continent yet we are the poorest people in the whole world...I don't like to use colonialism and slavery as an excuse so in my eyes Africans failed themselves by believing they can't do anything without the guidance of the master...remember everything begins with the MIND.

 

 

Peace, Love & Unity.