Black History at QAS

A Level History students, Sahiba and Amelie:

Black History Month is necessary to raise awareness of Black British people and their contribution to society, which is often overlooked, ignored or distorted by those who have the power to write history. The purpose of the month is not to undermine or discredit the achievements of the well-acknowledged figures in history, but instead, to draw attention to the erasure of Black history in society.  

The theme for Black History Month 2021 was “Proud to Be”; which saw black and brown people around the UK sharing the pride they had in their heritage and culture, which has been side-lined and mocked for centuries. 

However, whilst this month is key as it provides a platform to shine light on those marginalised people that have been forgotten, it is important that Black History is not just confined to a single month but remains in the foreground throughout the year. Black History Month is not only about celebrating figures from the past but paving and creating a future that celebrates all aspects of being black.

History Teacher, Mrs Kay-Barrero

As Amelie and Sahiba have put it so eloquently, Black History Month serves the crucial purpose of prompting us to continue to discuss and review how inclusive our curriculums are. This is something that the History department feels very passionately about, and that extends beyond our schemes of work, crossing over into our involvement in Junior Debate, EDI Society and the Lower Sixth Lecture Series. That said, our belief and aim is to weave black history throughout the year and across all year groups, and as such students at QAS can look forward to learning about:

• The diversity of Tudor society
• The legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade
• The impact of the British Empire
• The change in British society after World War Two

• Civil Rights in the USA from 1865 through the twentieth century

We have sought to mark the significance of Black History Month 2021 with a series of events and initiatives. A History-Science collaborative lecture for the 4s was held on 7^th October on the recent discoveries made about the crew of the 16^th century Mary Rose and how those discoveries have helped enlighten us to how diverse the society of Tudor England was. The Lower Six also enjoyed a lecture on 8^th October from Yassine Senghor, who spoke about intersectionality in action and then went on to discuss the role of empathy and reflection with several members of EDI. As a department, with the support of Amelie and Sahiba, we are working on the creation of a diversity board to display the faces, names and mini-biographies of influential individuals from varied backgrounds in the worlds of history and/or politics.

As always, we look forward to continually striving to challenge ourselves and our students across the year ahead.