October is an important time to recognise the contributions of Black people to society and their impact on our history and culture. This year, we are celebrating Black History Month in our community with a programme of events especially curated for this month, while also acknowledging that this is an ongoing movement, and take this opportunity to remind ourselves to amplify Black voices beyond one month each year.听
Events on our campuses听
This year鈥檚 theme is 鈥楽aluting our Sisters鈥�, so most of our highlighted events below have a special focus on the achievements of Black women: 听
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Wednesday 11 October, 18:00-19:45, , Highfield Campus听 Join Dr Ria Clarke, Priscilla Vivian and Esm茅 Ara’resa as they discuss their experiences navigating the healthcare system and improving healthcare for Black women.听 |
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Wednesday 11 and 25 October, 16:00-17:00, Multi-Purpose Studio, B42 (SUSU), Highfield Campus听听 Sign up via the @USDstreet Instagram account on the Monday before class.听 |
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Thursday 12 October, 15:00-16:00, Winchester School of Art Join our Associate Vice-President for EDI and Social Justice, Pascal Matthias, for an open, informal conversation reflecting on the University鈥檚 progress towards becoming a more diverse, inclusive community and where we need to do more.听 |
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Friday 13 October 20:00-23:30, , Highfield Campus听 |
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Wednesday 18 October 18:00-19:30, Highfield Campus听 Join Avila Chidume, founder of the inclusive greeting cards business Avila.Diana, as she hosts a panel of Black entrepreneurs, freelancers and start-up founders.听 |
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Thursday 19 October 15:00-19:00, and , Highfield Campus听听 Organised by the and , the Black History Month Cultural Festival is a time to celebrate and learn about a range of Black cultures.听 |
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Monday 23 October, 18:30-20:00, Below Deck, , Highfield Campus听 Join Arts Council-funded literature and art project Bridges not Borders and our English Department for a relaxed evening where you can share poetry in your mother tongue. You can read work from a poet you love, read your own writing in your mother tongue, and even write something together.听 |
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Wednesday 24 October 18:00-19:30, , Guildhall Square听 Join this special evening with James Berry Poetry Prize winner, Kaycee Hill, as she reads some works from her hotly anticipated debut collection, Hot Sauce, published this month. A Q&A will follow the reading.听 |
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Thursday 26 October 18:00-20:00, , Cemetery Road听 Hosted by Toluwa Atilade, a diversity and allyship consultant, campaigner and writer, the Black Girl Detox is an interactive, educational and fun space for Black women and their allies.听 |
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Monday 30 October 18:00-19:00, Online Tol煤lop茅 脪g煤nrem铆 is the founder of – an organisation aimed at empowering and enabling young underrepresented people of colour to pursue a career in tech. Less than five years since graduating from Southampton, she was named in the Forbes 30 under 30听listings in the Social Impact category, and won the Rising Star Outstanding Alumni Award. The event will be hosted by Pascal Matthias, Associate VP EDI and Social Justice. |
Our Students鈥� Union have more events and useful resources on their .
Events in our local community听
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Friday 6 October- Sunday 12 November, God’s House Tower, Southampton听 This free exhibition features work by artist Kialy Tihngang,听 which speculates that a group of enslaved African people combined European maritime technology with fetishes (African religious objects with magical powers) to create tools for a safe return home from their captors鈥� ship.听 |
Open until Thursday 30 November, across Southampton and Level 4 Hartley Library GalleryPart of a wider project in collaboration with Black Archive South aiming to preserve the histories of people of African and Caribbean descent in the UK, and mark Windrush 75, photographer Nosa Malcom took portraits of local community members. |
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Open until 7 October, John Hansard Gallery听听 This exhibition features two new film commissions: The Fist and Faluyi. Both films were shot in Nigeria and explore Akingbade鈥檚 interest in history, placemaking, legacy, and power.听 |
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Thursday 12 October, Southampton Central Library听听听 Join writer Simon Hudson as he explores intriguing stories honouring the significant achievements of women of colour, taking highlights from his books History Through the Black Experience.听 |
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Monday 23 October, 18:30, MAST Mayflower Studios, Southampton听 This will be an evening telling the stories of phenomenal women from Southampton鈥檚 African, Caribbean and Black British communities through three-minute mobile videos produced, filmed and edited by the storytellers themselves.听 |
360 Degrees podcast 鈥� Black History Month edition听听
Listen to the new episode of the 360 Degrees podcast, where host Emily Harrison is joined by Southampton alum Marcia Ore, who shares her previous experiences as a Black woman working in the police force and talks about the transformative work she has done.听听
Listen to the special Black History Month episode on or .听听
Resources听听
- Explore the , curated by our Library team, by selecting Black Voices in the Table of Contents section.听
- Learn more about our work of The Awarding Gap project, which most recently includes the .听
- is a resource library dedicated to telling the history of Black people in Southampton.听
How you can contribute听
- 鈥� attend a free online session to help equip you with techniques to tackle challenging situations and harmful behaviour. , 16:00-17:00. For all future sessions, please check the .听
- The gives you the tools you need to inform, challenge and contribute to the anti-racism agenda.听
How to get support听听
- The Student Hub are here to help you 24/7, 365 days a year, with any questions and concerns relating to your wellbeing, as well as fees, financial support, accommodation, disability, careers and course administration.听听
- 鈥� use this tool to let us know if you, or someone you know, has experienced incidents of discrimination, harassment, or other unacceptable behaviour. An advisor will get in touch to offer specialist support and guidance.听
- is an umbrella organisation for Africans living in Southampton and the surrounding areas, providing wellbeing support and opportunities to share cultures and traditions.听
Watch the to hear from students about their university experiences and learn about the importance of representation.