Black History Month
October 2023
Our programme of events for Black History Month 2023 seeks to celebrate our Black Sisters whilst also promoting different aspects of wellbeing, self care and resilience. We want to encourage members of staff, students and the local community to come together to learn and socialise.
Our keynote lecture this year will be presented by Natalia-Nana Lester-Bush on Wednesday 18 October on the Headington Campus. The session will consist of a lecture followed by a Q&A. We encourage attendees to submit questions in advance at the point of booking your spot.
Why Race Equity is a HIgher Education Emergency
Tuesday 18 October 2023, 6.00pm - 7.00pm
We are extremely excited to have secured Natalia for this event and look forward to as many of you as possible joining us on the day.
More about this event
Natalia-Nana is the Co-Chair of Goldsmiths, University of London's Strategy Board. Previously, she has been a Trustee of the Anti-Racist Alliance, a local anti-racism charity and a Steering Group Member of Women in Dev. They are a specialist in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Liberation, who blends their EDIL expertise with their lived experience as a bi-cultural, femme woman of colour with (non-visible) disabilities in their work supporting organisations and individuals in their journeys of Decolonisation, Equity and Inclusion. They centre Anti-Racism in their EDIL work, advising organisations and supporting leadership in journeys of inclusion and anti-racism, with organisations as varied as Credit Suisse, Samaritans, St Paul’s Cathedral, the NHS, and local community groups.
This Black History Month we are hosting a talk which invites and challenges us to consider Higher Education through a racial lens. Hosted by Natalia-Nana Lester-Bush, this lecture will offer a considered critique of how race and racism interact with some of the most pressing challenges and opportunities of the Higher Education experience. We will explore why, in a time of mass economic and educational crisis, race is the issue University staff, students and members of the wider Oxford community should be engaging with, and how white colleagues can - and should - be empowered and motivated to lead as allies to contribute to understanding and addressing the complex challenges the sector faces.
The Oxford Brookes Poetry Centre is holding a Poetry competition as part of this year's celebrations. This year's events will be 'dedicated to honouring the achievements of black women who are often the forgotten heroines. We want to amplify their voices and challenge the systems that oppress them.
The competition is free to enter and open to anyone at Oxford Brookes University and all Oxfordshire residents. It has two categories: under 16 and over 16. The closing date is Sunday 1 October 2023 and there are more details about how to enter on this page.
We are excited to say that our judge for the competition is the award-winning poet Isabelle Baafi.
13 October 2023, 10.00am - 3.00pm, Rose Hill Community Centre
On 13 October 2023 Oxford City Council are hosting a town hall style community engagement event at the Rose Hill Community Centre. This event is part of the City Council’s celebrations for Black History Month and it brings together a host of local stakeholders for a day of learning, dialogue and celebration. Drop into this event, we look forward to seeing you there.
A portfolio of skills booster and taught development courses for staff that address the sub themes for Black History Month 2023 which are self care, resilience and wellbeing.
- Communicating assertively - Wednesday 4 October 2023, 9.30am - 12.00pm
- Building your confidence and self belief - Thursday 5 October 2023, 10.00am - 12.30pm
- Discovering and using your strengths Wednesday 18 October 2023, 10.00am - 12.30pm
- Managing stress and overwhelm - Wednesday 25 October 2023, 10.00am - 12.30pm
Skills Booster Training Courses - Available on demand:
As part of celebrating our Black Sisters for this year's celebrations we invite you to make submissions to our Black HIstory Month University playlist. This is an opportunity for you to share and discover inspirational artists that will provide you with a soundtrack to help you be inspired, work and relax. The link to the playlist will be posted here once submissions start rolling in.
We welcome contributions from Oxford Brookes students and staff.
For Black History Month 2023, explore the library's Anti-racism reading list for a collection of fiction, poetry, non-fiction books, and online resources relating to racism and anti-racism. This list started with suggestions from Sola Adesola with contributions from Jane Butcher and library staff. Help us expand this list by emailing lr-equality@brookes.ac.uk with any suggestions.
If you want to learn more about Black history in Britain, browse the History of black, asian, and other ethnic minorities in Britain reading list. You can find all of these books and ebooks at the Oxford Brookes libraries. If you have any suggestions for this list please contact us at the address above.