view the “History from below” as more than just the white rural farmer and how there was more to the landscape than just that type of thing. But personally I don't feel like I've seen a lot at the moment, but at the same time I don’t think a movement like this should have had to trigger it, it really should have been something that has always been around I guess. My boyfriend does politics, and they have more people of colour within their department who are also trying to bring in more scopes of political discussion rather than just British policy and they’re just doing so much more and it’s been that way for a much longer time. You would think that because everything is rooted in history it would have happened sooner so it’s just “Why not sooner”? There's such an extensive history and reason behind what it has become. With one of my current modules, we have been talking about what heritage means for us, and I was saying that growing up around west London with my mum, she grew up with Notting Hill Carnival, and that was to celebrate the Windrush Generation coming and settling in the UK, and you’ve just seen it over the decade, and no one remembers that. They go to have fun because it's fun to drink and smoke or be with your friends and be out on the streets of London, but no one remembers what it was originally. What does Black History Month mean to you? I don’t know, personally. I think being mixed race, every day is a celebration of yourself, or that's how it always should be. Black History Month is great because it brings an educational platform for people to be able to engage in such a topic, but at the same time, it's difficult to get people to engage in something that is still just seen as “Fun” and different and cultural. This is the first year that I’ve seen people be like “Oh yeah, we really need to push for seminars and talks and literature reviews and events”. I know ACS, obviously they’ve been doing it for years, but even last year or the year before, it was people just going for a fun time - they weren't really going to appreciate it but I definitely do not want to say that they were doing it to be appropriate, that's a really big distinction to make. You can really see that there are people who like the culture because it's fun and different, but it's more
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than that. There's such an extensive history and reason behind what it has become. With one of my current modules, we have been talking about what heritage means for us, and I was saying that growing up around west London with my mum, she grew up with Notting Hill Carnival, and that was to celebrate the Windrush Generation coming and settling in the UK, and you've just seen it over the decade, and no one remembers that. They go to have fun because it's fun to drink and smoke or be with your friends and be out on the streets of London, but no one remembers what it was originally. My mum has never discouraged us from celebrating our identity, but that's kind of a celebration she wants to move away from because of how gentrified and commodified it has become, and that's the same with Black History Month. It is upsetting that it can hold so much more, but it doesn't, and people kind of miss the mark at the end of the day. I feel that within the university going forward there needs to be more steps taken rather than just “We’re extending our research”, there needs to be a lot more opportunities. I’m not saying just fit a quota and bring in black researchers and black lecturers, but if they want to expand their department, then do it from those who hold the gaze. If someone is just as qualified and a person of colour, then hire them instead. It's hard to engage in a setting where you don't see yourself a lot of the time. I know I’ve said I’ve felt more comfortable here, but there are still a lot of people coming from areas that aren't as open to diversity, or it's only their little group or hub, and it's hard to make that transition when you don't have a point of reference to feel like yourself. Interviewed and transcribed by Kira Orchard
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