By Sanaa Mumba Mang’ula (Y9)
Black History Month. It’s a topic we have all heard about from social media, parents, friends and common knowledge. But the real question is: What is BHM and not only why does it matter, but why is it important?
As few of you who are in year 12 will know, Sianna and I did an assembly about this topic the week before the holidays and I thought not only was it important to do it for your year but even for The Update.
What is it?
BHM is something that is celebrated in February in the United States and also celebrated in October in the United Kingdom. I think it’s important we celebrate it anyway. Not only were Black people kept as slaves and sold like products, but they were also dehumanised and used for labour centuries ago and still in some ways to this day.
Notable Figures
Wangari Maathai
What a lot of people don’t realise is that Black people have achieved so much in multiple industries and places in the world. I think an amazing inspiration is Wangari Maathai.
Wangari Maathai was the first African/Kenyan woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize. She was given this nobel piece prize because of a protest that she led to save one of the only intercity forests in the world, Karura forest in Nairobi. During this protest she gathered thousands of women to plant trees in the forest to save it from deforestation. Not only did this protest succeed but it led to her winning a prize and becoming one of Kenya’s most recognized heroes. She died on September 25 2011.
Henrietta Lacks
Another person who I think is worthy of acknowledgement is Henrietta Lacks.
Henrietta Lacks was a woman back in the 1920s who went through a cervical cancer birth and her placenta was farmed and taken from her without her knowledge and the cells in her placenta were scientifically tested and an abnormality was found. Her cells were reproducing at an alarming rate to the point that scientists didn’t know how to contain it. She nor her family were ever notified that her cells were taken.
To this day her cells are still reproducing and being used for cancer, COVID-19 and polio studies and vaccines to help with the development in this research. To this day her family did not know that her cells were in use. Her family to this day are still trying to get compensation for the cells that were taken from her and used towards these different tests and still have not been repaired or told about what is going on or happening with her cells.
Being Black at a White School
Something that is also important to talk about in the present tense is to feel and be in a PWI.
What is a PWI you may ask, a PWI is a Predominantly White Institution for example like all 3 Ecolint campuses.
In my opinion after living here for almost 4 years in a PWI you get to realize that some things that don’t seem normal in your own culture have just become a norm here for example Microaggressions.
Microaggressions
Microaggressions are basically small, everyday comments or actions that are lowkey offensive to someone because of their race, gender, sexuality, etc. The person saying it usually doesn’t even realise they’re being rude, like telling someone “you speak really good English” when they’re from another country, or acting surprised that a girl is good at sport. On their own, they might seem minor, but they add up and can make people feel like they don’t belong. §sn
Personally experiencing this in a PWI yes has been difficult but also has taught me a lot of things i expected to learn later in life that could also be necessary for now.
Stereotypes
I think we should also include stereotypes, in addition to microaggressions. We all know what a stereotype is and how mentally affecting it can be on the person on the receiving end, for example, some stereotypes are:
Racial stereotypes:
- All Asian people are good at maths
- Black people are naturally better at sports
- Middle Eastern people are dangerous or terrorists
- Latin people are illegal immigrants
- Assuming someone isn’t “really” from a country because of how they look
- Expecting a person of colour to speak for their whole race
These are harmful because they reduce people to their race instead of seeing them as individuals. Which I find completely dehumanizing and unnecessary for ANYONE to say.
To conclude, I just want all of you readers to acknowledge that what you say, how you say it and the meaning behind what you say can always affect people in a different way. Like a very famous quote says:
“ It’s words that are free. It’s how you use them that may cost you.”
-QuotesGram.