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Welcome back to Black History Month circulars! It has been a whole year since we started sending these out, we hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the contributions of different people and communities to science and society.
 
We’re kicking off Black History Month 2021 with a look back at what’s changed since the Black Lives Matter protests last year.

Be Inspired

Words that can change your world

“I knew then and I know now that, when it comes to justice, there is no easy way to get it. You can’t sugarcoat it. You have to take a stand and say: ‘This is not right.’ ” 


Claudette Colvin, Civil Rights Activist
 

Spotlight on... Statues and Street Names

Mary Seacole statue outside St Thomas' Hospital, unveiled in 2016 - Photo: Peter O'Connor, no changes made

 

During the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, statues became an important focus of public debate. The place of statues celebrating owners or traders of enslaved persons in public spaces was questioned, at the crest of a longer-lasting wave including the Rhodes Must Fall movement – which resulted in the removal of the British imperialist Cecil Rhodes from the University of Cape Town, although the statue at Oriel College, Oxford remains the subject of controversy.

Since May 2020, over 70 statues and monuments of British slave traders have been removed. These include the Edward Colston statue in Bristol, famously toppled into Bristol Harbour, which was temporarily replaced by a statue of a protester (taken down a day later by Bristol City Council). Several statues of Robert Clayton and John Cass – both key figures in the Royal African Company, the institution which displaced the largest number of enslaved people from Africa to the Americas – were also removed, along with degrading statues of African people.

Another important focus was in the names of streets and buildings. UCL’s introspection on this matter was initiated a few years earlier in 2018, with the external “Inquiry into the History of Eugenicists at UCL”, chaired by Professor Iyiola Solanke of the University of Leeds. In the wake of the 2020 protests, buildings named after prominent eugenicists Francis Galton and Karl Pearson were renamed in June last year. The names of 6 schools and four streets – in London and Plymouth – have been changed due to links with slavery, and another 21 additional street name changes are being considered. In Hackney, Cassland Gardens (named after the same John Cass) was renamed to Kit Crowley Gardens as the first action taken by the Review, Rename, Reclaim project. The new name was voted most popular by Hackney residents in a shortlist of four, and commemorates Kit Crowley, born in 1918 to an English mother and Barbadian father, who was a community stalwart for over 6 decades. The old Cassland Road Gardens sign has been moved to Hackney Museum as an educational artefact.

These changes have been met by opposition, with some people claiming they erase history. However, it’s also important to consider how decisions were made for which statues to erect (personal wealth often being a major factor), and who is omitted from representation in monuments commemorating important people. A commission was set up by Sadiq Khan reviewing monuments and street names linked to slavery in London, and ensure greater diversity in statues, street names, buildings and memorials. Indeed, many memorials focus on Victorian London, and the commission aims to reflect achievements and contributions from a wider historical period and a broader range of communities.

In this spirit, we celebrate new statues gracing our public spaces: on the first day of Black History Month last Friday, the first permanent artwork honouring the Windrush generation was unveiled in Hackney’s Mare Street. The work, created by Veronica Ryan, represents three Caribbean fruits – custard apple, breadfruit and soursop.

Do you remember Henrietta Lacks, the Black woman whose cervical cancer cells – taken without her knowledge or consent – created the most powerful cell line in the history of biology (HeLa)? (We profiled her in the email circular on 9th October 2020.) Bristol artist Helen Wilson-Roe has created a statue commemorating the 70th anniversary of her death, unveiled on Bristol University campus on 5th October. This is the first public statue of a Black woman, made by a Black woman in the UK.
The family of Henrietta Lacks with artist Helen Wilson-Roe (second left) at the unveiling of the statue in Bristol. Photo: Ben Birchall

Did You Know?

Following the death of George Floyd, murals dedicated to him began to pop up all over the world. The exact number of murals is unknown, but we’ve included a selection of our favourites below.
Naples, Italy - Photo: Kontrolab/Getty Images
Houston, Texas, USA - Photo: 2C2K Photography, no changes made
Belfast, Ireland - Photo: Rossographer, Geograph.ie
Idlib, Syria - Photo: mend
Minneapolis, USA - Photo: Laurie Shaull, no changes made

60 Seconds with
Dr Maggie Nyirenda Nyang'wa

Consultant Paediatrician at University Hospital Lewisham and PhD Candidate at Infection, Immunity and Inflammation Research and Teaching Department (III)
 
Tell us something surprising about yourself.  
When I was young in High School, there was a fire in my teacher’s house, and she left her keys inside whilst something was still on (note the whole house was not on fire!). Because I have a small build, I was able to climb in through the window to open the kitchen door and let her in so she could save her house. That’s always stayed with me.

If you had to describe yourself in a few words, what would they be?
If you ask anybody who knows me, I think they would say two things define me: passion and hard work. You can’t really separate them, I’m very passionate about what I do, and you know that if I embark on something I’m going to give it 150% dedication and commitment.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? 
I’m so lucky because since the age of 5 I wanted to be a doctor. I didn’t grow up in a family of doctors, but I was fascinated about studying medicine, so when I was older it was a bonus that I was good at sciences. Because of this, I was able to pursue the route to studying medicine and becoming a doctor. My childhood dream came true.

If you could change places with someone, past or present, for a day who would it be and why?  
I would not hesitate in saying Mother Teresa. One of the things I really believe in is kindness, thinking of others. Being of service to others is such a noble thing because often people will want to do good, but they are not able to - because they don’t have the resources, or the capability, or they’re going through a lot themselves. The fact that she was able to serve so many people in her community without asking for anything in return, without withholding any part of her life was amazing. I think if the world had even 10 or 20 Mother Teresa’s, the world would be a different place.
 
If you could change one thing to make the world a better place, what would it be?  
It would be that recognition of appreciating, respecting, and serving everybody regardless of their gender, age, race, socioeconomic status, or their faith. I just feel that now, as we celebrate Black History Month, there are lots of people out there who probably have had a harder life because they were not given the same opportunities, service, or care as others and as a result, they probably have not contributed to this world in the way they would have wanted to. So, I feel that every child growing up should be taught in the same way, to love everybody, to respect everybody, and treat everybody the same irrespective of whether they look like you - they are important. And by always thinking of them in that way, we can make the world a better place. 

Thank you Maggie! 
 

Food Lovers

Delicious recipes from Africa and the diaspora
Photo: CCFoodTravel.com, no changes made

Ethiopian injera and stews

Traditional Ethiopian meals are usually served on injera, a flatbread made from fermented teff flour batter, with a good few different stews and sides served on top (like in the photo above). Although you don’t need to make 12 stews every time you make Ethiopian food, we’re sharing a few ideas below.
 
Here’s a recipe for injera with two options – a traditional 2-3 day fermented batter, and a quick version using dry yeast, which can both be made gluten-free. (The traditional version is similar to making a sourdough starter – calling all lockdown bakers!)
 
And here are three recipes for stews to garnish the injera (including vegan alternatives):

  • Misir wat – a lentil stew
  • Zigni wat – ground beef stew
  • Gomen wat – stewed spinach

 
If you like the sound of these without the cooking, we recommend Lalibela restaurant in Tufnell Park – named after a town in Northern Ethiopia renowned for its 11 breath-taking churches carved into monolithic rocks, including St George’s church pictured below (12th/13th century).

Photo: Rod Waddington, no changes made

Keep Exploring
Read, Watch, Listen

Read...
Unheard Voices, collected by Malorie Blackman. This anthology of writing was published on the 200 year anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade, and includes narratives from enslaved people Olaudah Equiano and Harriet Jacobs, as well as poetry from Benjamin Zephaniah.
Watch...
George Floyd: A year on from his death what has changed? This BBC Newsround feature includes videos on what has changed in the USA and UK.

This Guardian piece is worth a read too!

 
Watch the 1964 Oxford Union debate with Malcolm X
 
Listen...
Race2Rise Podcast by Renee and Rondette on Spotify and Apple Music. Two expats living in London who explore everything from careers, mental health, relationships and their passions.

What's On
News & Events

Emma Dabiri: “Allyship for race equality”
Emma is a SOAS Teaching Fellow, researcher and author of “What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition”.
Friday 15 October, 1–2pm
[GOSH seminar open to ICH staff and students]

Tomorrow
1-4pm Celebrating Black History Month in AI [virtual]
6.30-8.30pm The Struggle for Stonebridge [in person screening]

See full list of UCL Black History Month celebrations here.

16th-17th October
1-54 Contemporary Art Fair at Somerset House (£25/£10 concessions), including a record 20 of 48 galleries from Africa. 

16th-17th October
Black-owned Hackney fair, celebrating food, artisans and other Black-owned businesses (Bohemia place, opposite Hackney Central bus station)

Until 31st October
The Charlie Philips Archive at the Southbank Centre (free) - British-Jamaican photographer shares his artwork documenting life in Ladbroke Grove and Notting Hill. 

21st October-19th November
Decolonising African Cinema: A History showcasing African films with panel discussions.

This circular was put together by Francesca Cavallaro & Laurette Bukasa from ICH Population, Policy & Practice Research & Teaching Department

Editor: Terrie Fiawoo

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UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/child-health

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https://www.ucl.ac.uk/equality-diversity-inclusion/committees-and-social-networks/race-equality-steering-group

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