Vale of Glamorgan Council marks Black History Month
THE Vale of Glamorgan Council will light Hood Road Tunnel in the pan-African colours of red, yellow and green to mark Black History Month
Running throughout October, Black History Month is a national celebration that promotes Black contributions to British culture. It also aims to encourage a better understanding of Black history.
Linked to the awareness event, a project called 2000 Nations: Celebrating Diversity has been launched by Black History Wales.
Its title is inspired by the fact that people of African and Caribbean descent originate from around 2000 different ethnic groups with a range of over 2000 languages and multiple cultural traditions.
Over the coming year, the project will explore interventions, educational achievements and innovative contributions and celebrate this heritage through the Arts in Wales.
Details of individual events and other information related to Black History Month will be shared on the Council’s social media channels.
The Black History Month website also contains a wealth of resources, including information about prominent black Britons, including:
• Dame Jocelyn Barrow – educationalist, anti-racist, and community activist:
• Baroness Lawrence – campaigner, mother of Stephen Lawrence, awarded OBE, and created a Life Peer.
• Dr John Anthony Roberts – first person of African ancestry to be made a QC in England and Wales.
• Paul Yaw Boateng – UK’s first Black Cabinet Minister.
• Diane Abbott – first Black woman ever elected to British Parliament.
Cllr Kathryn McCaffer, Vale of Glamorgan Council Cabinet Member for Leisure, Arts and Culture, said: “We mark Black History Month annually, but this year the event seems particularly significant in light of the Black Lives Matter movement.
“Persons from Afro-Caribbean backgrounds have contributed greatly to the history of this country, helping shape the diverse, vibrant nation we see today.
“In the Vale we are also proud to live in an inclusive, multicultural environment. It is important to celebrate that fact and recognise all the different strands that make our communities so rich.”