University of Winchester celebrates Black History Month with virtual events

23 Oct 2020

As we head into the last week of Black History Month 2020, the University of Winchester's celebrations continue with virtual events which members of the public are warmly invited to join.

University hosted events open to the public in the coming week include:

Details of events and registration for free tickets are available on the University of Winchester website at: www.winchester.ac.uk/events.

Sam Jones, Assistant Vice-Chancellor at the University of Winchester who leads the University's Race Equality Action Group, said: "The University of Winchester is home to a diverse and flourishing community of students and staff from around the world. As the University for social justice, we strive to be an anti-racist, inclusive institution. Our celebration of Black History Month not only underlines how much we value the diversity of our community and society more broadly, but also enables us to consider the ongoing work needed to embed a more inclusive, equal and diverse culture at our institution.

"Following the shocking murder of George Floyd, we undertook to move further, faster in our efforts to be an anti-racist institution. A lot of work is already underway and has been for some time. We are shining a light on the places where we can, and need, to do more. We understand that difficult conversations are needed and we welcome this and welcome the challenges that being truly inclusive as an institution bring. We want to do more, we want to understand more, we want to listen. But, vitally, we want to bring change through actions," he added.

Throughout Black History Month, the University has been hosting a range of events for students and staff to increase understanding of Black culture and history. These include workshops, presentations, reading groups, online training sessions, and meetings of the BAME University Network, Equality and Diversity Forum and Race Equality Action Group. A week-long event explored what 'decolonising the curriculum' means for the University.

October has been celebrated as Black History Month in the UK since 1987. The national celebration aims to recognise and celebrate Black British achievement and foster general knowledge and understanding of Black history.

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