The experiences, culture, history and identities of Britain’s African Caribbean communities were explored and celebrated at a pioneering conference.
The event called Voices from the African Caribbean Diaspora was held at Huddersfield University and featured everything from soul food to sound systems.
Organiser and senior lecturer Dr Michelle Bartholomew from the School of Human and Health Sciences said: “The feedback has been amazing and we hope it will be an annual event.
“It was fairly local this year, but next year we hope it will be truly national.”
The genesis of the event was in the research that Dr Bartholomew conducted for her PhD, when she interviewed older African-Caribbean women about their health experiences.
Dr Bartholomew’s presentation was entitled I Don’t Want Fish ’n’ Chips, I Want Soul Food.
It drew on her research among African Caribbean women and stressed the importance of particular foods in maintaining a connection to homeland cultural beliefs.
A significant finding of the research was that many of the women distrusted western medicine and believed that herbal remedies from their homeland gave some protection against illness.
She said: “The women I interviewed all came from the West Yorkshire area and I wanted to be able to share my research with these women collectively, but also within a forum with other members of the community.”
Keynote speakers were Huddersfield University’s Prof Adele Jones and the Rev Dr Michael Mkpadi, who is Catholic Chaplain for the African and African Caribbean communities of the Leeds diocese.
Other speakers included:
Dr Sharon Wray, who spoke about African Caribbean women’s experiences of grandmothering.
The Rev Dr Sharon Prentis on strategies to promote an integrated sense of identity and resilience in the Black community.
Amanda Huxtable, who has taken part in the Sound System Culture Project which gathered oral history from first and second generation African Caribbean settlers in Huddersfield.
Milton Brown, who has researched gang culture in six high schools in the Kirklees area.
Carol Gilchrist spoke about Kirklees Council’s approach to community involvement and engagement within the African Caribbean community.
Jean-Marie Ninziza examined the asylum system and social environment that awaited refugees when they arrived in the UK
Debi Johnson spoke about the impact that can be made on individuals when they trace their often complex ancestry.
The conference was attended by community groups, including Women in Action, a Huddersfield organisation whose choir sang at the event.
Funds were raised to support the Ugandan organisation Wells of Hope, which provides care and schooling for the children of prisoners.
