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Day 193, Year of #Mygration: Black History Month

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Today is the start of Black History Month. In recognition, The Open University has a collection of content celebrating inspirational individuals and events for you to explore. Issues of migration can be found interwoven and analysed through many of these pieces.

Black History Month takes place every year and celebrates, recognises and values the inspirational individuals and events from within black and ethnic minority communities. During Black History Month, we remember and celebrate the important people from the past and also those who contribute to and help our society today. First celebrated in the UK in 1987, Black History Month in the UK is marked annually during the month of October and in the USA and Canada during the month of February, with important reference to the black society. Black History Month UK went from receiving a kind-hearted response to being a national celebration to Black History Month UK individuals, shaping history as it stands today.

The collection of works on The Open University’s OpenLearn website is diverse, covering a broad range of issues and topics facing and affecting the Black community, both historical and contemporary. Links to migration-related issues can be found in many of the pieces. Learn how Queen Nzinga of the Mbundu people used inventive tactics to combat Portuguese slave raids into her kingdom. Read the story of how a young South African girl went on a missionary tour in the US and returned years later after staying to attend university. She then returned to South Africa as the country’s first Black female graduate. Discover how the Notting Hill carnival is a performance of heritage, exploring colonialism, slavery and integration in Britain.

Over the course of the month, we will be including posts from staff who will share their experiences and journeys of working at The Open University, as well a number of events being held to celebrate Black History Month. In the meantime, this video by Jon Chase, science communicator, uses rap to educate on how Black contributions have historically been over-looked and underappreciated in the science community.

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