«Do you think I chose this skin?
I mean, if I got a chance to choose, it’s ironic but I’d choose the same thing.
Someone told me I act as if I’m only black and nothing else.
I thought about it and damn what else could I do?
I wake up and I scream “yes to being black”, not as an act of protest or rectitude.
I scream it out because if I wasn’t I’d be a completely different fruit».
Joshua-Daniel Kerr Alleyne
At UWC Adriatic October 2022 was Black History Month, the month dedicated to celebrating black history and to highlighting the importance of people and events in the history of the African diaspora. College students on the organising team worked hard to put together a series of events aiming to inform the community, trigger reflections and emotions, and deliver some good fun as well.
The quotation at the beginning of this article is by Joshua (Jamaica), a second-year student who, along with his peers Babylyn (Ghana), Briana (Tanzania), Liliana (Portugal), Nilaja (Switzerland), Margarymafalda (Mozambique), Mercedes (UK), and many others rolled out an unforgettable BHM programme this term.
During the two Focuses that were held – run entirely by the students – both black history and black culture were discussed, focussing on pre-colonial history, which is less known. Both events presented how black culture has contributed so many genres. For example, from a musical point of view, the influence of black culture extends from rock & roll, R&B and soul. Joshua comments how though these events «we wanted the audience to clearly understand our humanity before we were enslaved as well as afterwards». Other well-attended activities were the Afrobeats workshop on Afribbean dances and the cooking workshop, during which fried dumplings were prepared.
A highlight of the month was the talk by Justin Randolph Thompson, an American who has lived in Florence for many years, where he organises the BHM every year. His talk, attended by the entire College community, explained how BHM works in Florence, and went on illustrate how Western art and history are linked to black history. Justin believes that Europe is not anti-racist, and as Joshua commented, «the more we say so, the better, in order to find out where our allies are – people who are aware of what things are really like in Italy and other European countries, so that we may put an end to systemic racism and its rhetoric».
The team of students organising BHM was supported by Miriam, the College Study Support Coordinator, who encouraged the students to commit to doing well but also to enjoy rolling out the programme without making it too intense for themselves. College life in October starts to get intense, so it was important that they end up pleased with what they had accomplished but with sufficient stamina to conclude the term. The students therefore made a careful selection of the topics: «We identified our priorities and talked about everything we really most cared about, including slavery».
By the end of the month the students were proud ofwhat they had accomplished. «I think our work has had an impact on our community» says Joshua. When he delivered a speech on the school stairwell – the first few lines of this news item are an excerpt – he says he was moved.
