Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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Making Black History Month meaningful again
ROGER McKENZIE argues that Black History Month has been sanitised, losing its original purpose of empowering black people through knowledge of their history and struggles to actually go out and fight the battles of today
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaks during a reception to celebrate Black History Month, at no 10 Downing Street, London. Picture date: Wednesday October 9, 2024
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
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NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
BLACK History Month (BHM) amounts to 31 days of ghost stories.
We spend the month listening to stories of black ghosts who we are taught to revere and treat as virtual gods and whose lives we should almost learn by heart.
Some of us are even taught to believe that this once-a-year extravaganza of ackee and saltfish, pakoras and samosas — sometimes even on the same plate — actually makes a difference to the levels of racism at work or in our communities.
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