Black History Month 2020

01 October 2020

Every year in October we celebrate Black History Month. This year we feel it is important to acknowledge the context of widespread Black Lives Matter anti-racism protests that have become a defining feature of 2020, and the ongoing discussion about how to tackle racism. We should be mindful of this as we enter Black History Month and beyond.

Black History Month 2020

This year we will be drawing on various themes such as literature, politics, art, sports, historical moments, and culture. We will be shining a light on the inspirational Black British figures within our society today.

We will continue to encourage visibility and representation. Without seeing figures in the public eye that mirror a part of your identity, it can be extremely difficult to apply for that role, reach for those achievements and become that person. While we can’t cover everything in one month, and we encourage your exploration of Black history to continue outside of October, we’ll be updating this page with various resources on some of the above topics.

Dig deeper, look closer, think bigger

In addition to the Black Lives Matter protests, the Covid-19 pandemic has further exacerbated the various complexities of longstanding social and racial inequalities in the UK. For more information on this you can read the Public Health England report by Professor Kevin Fenton.

The impact of these huge challenges directly affects the physical and mental wellbeing of the Black members of our community. Without a doubt this reinforces the urgency to discuss, tackle and confront the institutional and systemic racial structures within our society.

As a public organisation representing the diverse groups in Sheffield, we acknowledge the importance of taking full ownership and responsibility for striving for positive change.