#blackbritain

[moniquelewisofficial]

Urma. Pictured in the centre. One of the first black air hostesses in Britain. Proud to have personally known and worked with her in Liberty London. ♥️ - ML

[moonfirebrides]

Since its #WindrushDay I thought I'd reshare these pieces. The text below was penned by @sazisophiri about my work, I couldn't have put it better myself • • • • • • Featured works: 'God Save the Queen' and 'Windrush Scandal' by @thehoneyeffect . . . . 72 years ago the HMT Empire Windrush arrived by Tilbury Docks carrying workers from the Caribbean who were invited as BRITISH subjects to help rebuild Britain post WW2. Upon arrival they were met with hostility, and that hostile continued for many of them facing racism and discrimination, and being denied rights. Nowadays it’s hard to mention the name Windrush without it preceding the word ‘scandal’. It’s painful to think of all those who have suffered in the hands of the British government, with some losing their livelihoods, being taken from everyone they knew and deported to places they were not familiar with. For some of the victims, the stress of this caused health problems which led to the loss of life. A compensation fund has been created but a tiny percentage has been paid. Many still await justice. The artworks featured in the post are by @thehoneyeffect and illustrate some of the struggles that the Windrush generation and the generations after them have had to endure throughout the decades. These works were originally commissioned by @leftlionmagazine for their Windrush special 2 years ago, and the first one is featured on the front cover of Journeys to Nottingham by @nottinghamblackarchive that features a collections of narratives and photographs from people who travelled from the Caribbean to Nottingham during the Windrush era. Copies were being sold at @new_art_exchange. I will place a link in my bio to the drama ‘Sitting in Limbo’ which premiered on the BBC a few weeks ago about one of the victims of the scandal. I’ll also include the link to Nottingham Black Archive’s website and @thehoneyeffect’s Etsy store where you can purchase prints of the work featured in this post. #windrushgeneration #windrushday2020 #blackbritain #blackwomenartists (at Nottingham, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBv7YkmF_x4/?igshid=1s4ecmm20qeg9

[suzylwade]

Handsworth Songs ‘Black Audio Film Collective’s’ ‘Handsworth Songs’ (1986) directed by the British artist John Akomfrah follows the unrest that burned for three days through the Birmingham neighbourhood in a loose documentary format. That year, black communities came out onto the streets across Britain to protest heavy-handed policing, police killings and the racist politics of the Thatcher government. A few weeks after Handsworth, Brixton in London erupted when a black woman, Cherry Groce, was shot in the course of a police raid, as did the ‘Broadwater Farm’ estate in the north of the city following the death of Cynthia Jarrett in another house search. The ghosts that haunt those street fights hang heavy in Akomfrah’s film. They are of poverty, colonialism and the betrayal of the “Windrush” generation. A woman being interviewed amongst the debris recalls the racist rhetoric of Enoch Powell; she remembers when Malcolm X strode through the grey streets of Smethwick, in the West Midlands in 1965, just nine days before he was assassinated. Douglas Hurd, then home secretary visits the scene, broken glass still underfoot, and sympathises with a white crowd of bystanders. “It must have been a scary experience,” he says. Akomfrah’s work was first broadcast in 1986 for the ‘Channel 4’ series ‘Britain: The Lie of the Land’ - back when Channel 4 broadcast such things - in the white heat of the Handsworth unrest, but its subject is not confined to the events of those three late summer days. Instead it tracks how we, Britain, got there. #neonurchin #neonurchinblog #dedicatedtothethingswelove #suzyurchin #ollyurchin #art #music #photography #fashion #film #words #pictures #neon #urchin #handsworthriots #tottenhamriots #eighties #blackbritain #racism #blacklivesmatter #channel4 #thelieoftheland #blackaudiofilmcollective #johnakomfrah #handsworthsongs https://www.instagram.com/p/CFwMOlLl0mJ/?igshid=ae0nhegr4jqt

[shakesgharris]

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It's so great when you think of an issue and create something to raise awareness on that topic... I can tell you from experience that it's not as easy as it looks. So shout out to @tinaamana who brought this to life! Can't wait to see the final piece. Go follow her and check out this piece: do you see me #soulmusic #soul #randb #podcast #neosoul #Blackhistorymonth #blackhistorymonthuk #blackgirlmagic #blackboyjoy #stereotype #stereotypical #racists #racism #missunderstood #judged #blackbritain #blackandwhite # (at Birmingham city centre) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8UHN73AXKr/?igshid=1p9endm4j0yti

[alexis-peskine]

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My Bredren Zak Ové @zakove is the baddest artist I know! #sculputure #blackartist #blackness #genius #trinidad #blackbritain #carnaval #mdmprops #art #badman #friezesculpturepark #uk #europe #caribbean (at London, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/By2bRWrFdH3/?igshid=18j8tsbp0keud

[therenaissanceladyblog]

Been AWOL for the past few weeks due to some personal issues but here’s to the face of Resilience, Rebirth and Restoration. As I stand celebrating the end of Black History Month U.K., I am reminded that everyone deserves the right to be proud of who they are and what they want to be in life. For me, that starts with a little affirmation which goes a long way to reignite our purpose and show the vast richness of diversity that people like myself (Black and Brown people) bring to the UK. So I Proudly Affirm to YOU: Be Strong Be Kind Be Free Be unapologetically YOU Embrace YOUR imperfections Stand up for YOURSELF Do things that make YOU Proud of YOURSELF Be true-true to YOURSELF and true to YOUR morals Believe in YOURSELF and believe in YOUR journey Never let anything stand in the way of the PERSON YOU are Becoming And most importantly, celebrate YOUR every success, learn from failure and acknowledge who YOU are Proud to BE. Happy Black History Month Beloveds 🖤 and here’s to celebrating being able to live life to the fullest without having to compromise who we are as Black People and dropping YOUR weekly motivational dose 🥰💃🏽🥰 Follow @therenaissancelady for more updates and do LIKE, SAVE, SHARE & COMMENT as The Renaissance Journey continues ... #BlackHistoryMonth #Affirmations #BlackBritain #BlackHistoryMonthUK #AffirmYourself #ProudToBe #SpeakUpSpeakOut #GoalGetter #Empowerment #Creativity #BlackExcellence #BlackGirlMagic #UnapologeticallyMe #InfluencerLifestyle #IntentionalLiving #LivePurposefully #BeInspired #LifestyleArchitect #Lifestyle #ContentCreator #BloggerSoc #BlackCreators #BlackInfluencers #Influencers #LifestyleBlogger #BrownGirlBloggers #BlackBloggersClub #MelaninBloggers #BlackBritishBloggers #TheRenaissanceLady (at London, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVtrnwzoHch/?utm_medium=tumblr

[rukaiyarussell]

Choice FM was due to get its blue plaque today marking its 30th anniversary but due to Covid it’s been postponed. I’m gonna celebrate Choice anyway. We were listeners in my house from when it got its licence. Me and @tahnaiya won a competition singing on there which won us a trip to the studios in Trinity Gardens/above the Red Records and the newly opened drive thru McDs in Old Kent Rd. I also won a box of Haribo when they’d moved to Borough (the beginning of the end). A lot of memories. Daddy Ernie and Reggae. Martin Jay and Soca. 279 with Hip Hop on Fridays. Commander B with Jungle on Saturdays. Dave P with Gospel on Sundays. Jenny Francis in the evenings and Kirk Anthony with the quiet storm. Calvin Francis, George Kay, Jigs, Angie Greaves. Geoff Schumann in the mornings and I know there’s so many more names I’ve forgotten. Massive part of my growing up and massive part of the Black community in London and a massive loss when it went. The blue plaque is deserved. 💙 (you know I’ve still got my tapes 😄😉) #ChoiceFM #BluePlaque #BHM #TrinityGardens #Brixton #SW2 #SW9 #ChoiceFMUK #969FM #107FM #BlackBritain #BlackBritish #DaddyErnie #MartinJay #DJ279 #CommanderB #DaveP #JennyFrancis #KirkAnthony #CalvinFrancis #GeorgeKay #Jigs #GeoffSchumann https://www.instagram.com/p/CGCVJatggyW/?igshid=1mvfb1uttrrqc

[tyneoconnell]

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As a child my godfather Quentin Crisp - a genuine hero - drummed into me “you owe it to your biographer to make everyday extraordinary” I was taught the debt I owe my #ancestors & #eccentrics of history who endured persecution genocides & Unimaginable deprivations to change the status quo. The Queer Torchbearers of History who fought against #bigotry #slavery #misogyny & #antisemitism so that we can enjoy freedoms & opportunities too easily taken for granted. In my darkest moments, laying on the cold tiles of the bathroom floor, my body battered by the fear & pain of this #braintumour I’m engulfed by an overwhelming sense of worthlessness that haunts all who endure those dark nights of the soul. Battling demons & overdosing on the shame that I haven’t done enough, been enough, appreciated enough, loved enough, lived & seen enough to earn the right to feel afraid. I have forfeited so much joy, wrestling with pain & the limitations of my body. When those waves of pain submerge me & drag me out into the ocean of despair. When I can’t see the shore where everyone I cherish are building sandcastles. When I have lost the tide & no one can hear me calling for help, or see me disappear into the dark oblivion of what it means to undervalue the wonderment of life...I remember my godfather, #quentincrisp reminding me “I owe a debt to history & my biographer to make everyday extraordinary” - I remember clambering over #mayfair rooftops in ballgowns at night, clutching my hen & looking out across garden-squares as swan-necked women emerged from Rolls Royces disappearing into the basement of #berkeleysquare which 200 years ago was a secret Catholic chapel where #irish Playwright #davidgarrick married German opera singer, Violetta. I see Garrick’s friend, African #composer choreography & Mayfair #dandy #ignatiussancho (1729-1780) dashing to the polling booth -first #blackbritain to vote 1774. Uncovering & breathing life into the achievements of the ghosted maligned & heteronormalised Queer Torchbearers of History that “straight white male historians” have robbed us of via a heteronormative Calvinist historiography based on prejudice over facts #queerhistory #blackhistory #lgbtqia (at Home House) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFQV4dOgdME/?igshid=r6zmdync46n6

[acubien]

DAY 6 of daily #photographic history of #BlackBritain from the book "Black Britain - A Photographic History" by Professor Paul Gilroy WE ARE POSTAL WORKERS. WE ARE PROTESTORS . WE ARE ANTI-RACISTS Photo: A postal engineer holding an apt placard about #racist #EnochPowell in front of the Post Office Tower (now BT Tower) , 30 Nov 1970. . . . . . . . . . #blackhistory#racist #BTTower #London #BlackBritish #artphotography #postoffice #legend #postalworker #upyours #antiracist #antiracism (at BT Tower) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBrHd3SBEAa/?igshid=1dvaqeagpvl1f

[suzylwade]

Handsworth Songs Made for the ‘Channel 4’ series ‘Britain: The Lie of the Land’ the film ‘Handsworth Songs’, directed by artist John Akomfrah, was released in 1986 after the riots in Handsworth, Birmingham and Tottenham in 1985. The film comprises archive material and an empathic sound design and footage shot by the ‘Black Audio Film Collective’s’ (‘BAFC’) during and after the riots. The ‘Collective’s’ practice coolly assumed not only that “black”, “avant-garde” and “politics” could co-exist but that they must entail one another. Such assumptions and confidence were all the more remarkable for the fact that they were so hard won: the ‘Collective’s’ Lina Gopaul remembered that the idea of a black avant-garde was greeted with incomprehension when the ‘Black Audio Film Collective’s’ (BAFC) began their work. Even the sight of young black people carrying cameras provoked bemusement. Gopaul recalled police officers asking “Are they real?” as the ‘Collective’ filmed events in Handsworth and ‘Broadwater Farm’ twenty five years ago. The music used in ‘Handsworth Songs’ is also note worthy. Mark Stewart and the Maffia’s dub-refracted cut-up version of ‘Jerusalem’ makes a bid for an account of Englishness in which “blackness” - far from being something that can be excluded - becomes the only possible fulfilment of the millenarian promise of Blake’s revolutionary poem. The use of Stewart’s music also brings home the extent to which 'Handsworth Songs' belonged to a post-punk movement. Whilst Trevor Mathison’s astonishing sound design certainly draws upon dub - its voice loops and seething electronics are equally reminiscent of the work of ‘Test Department’ and ‘Cabaret Voltaire’. #neonurchin #neonurchinblog #dedicatedtothethingswelove #suzyurchin #ollyurchin #art #music #photography #fashion #film #words #pictures #neon #urchin #handsworthriots #tottenhamriots #eighties #blackbritain #racism #blacklivesmatter #channel4 #thelieoftheland #blackaudiofilmcollective #johnakomfrah #handsworthsongs https://www.instagram.com/p/CFwMWoaFiYM/?igshid=715t5mjs10zw

[abigailsphotographs]

Stop killing the mandem. 

[jamiedhunt]

Such a pleasure attending the 40th #BritAwards & what a show it was. Got see some absolute heroes speak truth to power & light up the stage. I still haven't picked a highlight yet!👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾! #Brits #RedCarpet #Awards #Music #Show #ActorsLife #AwardsSeason #BlackBritain (at Brit Awards) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wjzy_H5QK/?igshid=165ozmdqoho87

[alexis-peskine]

Yesterday @somersethouse for the opening of the incredible show Get Up Stand Up Now! With Sara Shamsavari @studio_shamsavari & Victor Ekpuk @victorekpuk ! So glad to be part of this already legendary Exhibition! Thanks to my Bredren Zak Ove @zakove for curating such a powerful show! This is inspirational! This is beyond art! Together, we’re stronger! I’m looking forward to one day doing this in my conservative hometown of Paris and shaking things up! #blackness #art #afropeans #afropean #blackbritish #blackbritain #blackbrit #caribbean #carib #africa #blackartist #blackartists #blackartistspace #blackartistmatter #safespace #blackexcellence #unapologeticallyblack #blessed #blackjoy #blackisbeautiful (at London, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/BynAPc2I58O/?igshid=5mu8or03q18s

[kinolibrary]

1980s Soundsystem

Kinolibrary is excited to introduce our new collection of films depicting soundsystem parties in 1980s South London. Soundsystem culture developed in Kingston ghettos and made its way to Britain in the 1960s and 70s. Through the development of an underground music scene, West-Indian immigrants connected with their cultural roots in warehouses, in parks and on street corners. As these films show, combining reggae, dub and electronic sounds created an immersive sonic experience outside the mainstream system of music distribution. Here are some of our favourite clips:

Jah Life vs Killawatt Sound Clash

Soundsystem in a South London park

1987 Notting Hill Carnival

Soundsystem DJ and MC