Preston group hosting series of events to mark Black History Month

Preston Black History Group is hosting a series of events to mark Black History Month this October.

The group is made up of members from the African and Caribbean communities in Preston and the North West, plus many partners with an interest in Black history.

The month of activities kicks off on Tuesday 4 October at 7pm at Jalgos Sports and Social Club in Rose Street, with Black to the Future.

The event celebrates and showcases the achievements of people of African origin, irrespective of their place of birth.

The schedule of events is listed below. They all take place at Jalgos unless specified.

Thursday 13 October at 7pm – Film night – AKWANTU: The Journey

A film by Roy T Anderson, Akwantu: The Journey is a ground-breaking documentary film that tells the story of the legendary Maroons of Jamaica and their gallant fight for freedom.

Tuesday 18 October at 7pm – Jamaica to Penrhyn

A video presentation about the fascinating story of Penrhyn Castle in North Wales and its connections with the Caribbean and the Transatlantic Slave Trade by Keith Dagger and edited by Margaret Singleton from Preston Black History Group.

Keith and Margaret discovered the story of Penrhyn Castle that was built by enslaved people from Jamaica. The documentary includes a tour of the castle, interviews about the history of the building and the family who built it.

Wednesday 19 October at 1pm at UCLan’ Foster Building – Book launch for the new edition of Gretchen Gerzina’s Black England

This event is jointly organised by UCLan’s Institute for Black Atlantic Research (IBAR) and Centre for Migration, Diaspora and Exile (MIDEX). Gretchen Gerzina is the Paul Murray Kendall Chair in Biography, and Professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and her lunchtime lecture will introduce the new edition of her classic text Black England which has just been published. She will introduce characters from the historical text and answer questions about the book’s importance in this new era of Black Lives Matter.

Book on Eventbrite.

Thursday 20 October at 7pm – Film night –Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution

This is the first full length documentary to explore the Black Panther party, it’s significance to the broader political and cultural awakening for black people, weaving a treasure trove of rare archival footage with the voices of the people who were there: the police, FBI informants, journalists, white supporters and detractors, the Black Panthers who remained loyal to the party, and those who left.

This event and is supported by Unite (The Union) N/W 0058 Bamber Bridge and Leyland branch.

Tuesday 25 October at 7pm – Book launch for England is my Home: Windrush Lives in Lancashire

Preston Black History Group and the UCLan Centre for Migration, Diaspora and Exile (MIDEX) present the findings from our latest collaboration. The eleven interviews featured in this book chart more than eight centuries of lived experience among Preston’s ‘Windrush’ generation. Through these pages, six women and five men who arrived in Lancashire from the Caribbean in the 1960s and early 1970s tell their stories on their own terms.

Thursday 27 October at 7pm – Film night –Choc’late Soldiers from the USA

Choc’late Soldiers from the USA tells the story of 140,000 Black American soldiers and thousands of British civilians who crossed a racial divide to forge an unexpected bond. While serving in a segregated military, Black men and women do much of the U.S. Army’s ‘heavy lifting’ by day, and introduce the British population to jazz, jitterbugging and Black American culture by night. For the first time, Black American soldiers experience what it is like to be treated as equals and as Americans. Directed by Emmy award winning director Noel Izon and co-produced by author Gregory Cooke.

The film showing will be followed by a question and answer session with Professor Alan Rice, lecturer in English and American studies.

Sunday 30 October at 4pm at St Matthew’s Church, New Hall Lane – Service of remembrance for the Black community and continuing the reminiscing at Jalgos

A celebration of the lives of those lost during the last two years. All welcome.

<br />