Black History Month 2023 – Panel of Power: Saluting our sisters
Isaac Pickrum is a third-year studying International Relations, focusing on decolonial theory and revolutionary ecology (indigeneity and biocentricity). Born and raised Black in Washington DC, he is passionate about social justice causes and community engagement, which he advocates for through organisations like the African Caribbean Society (ACS) and the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Student Network (BSN). As part of these initiatives, he and his peers celebrated Black voices in St Andrews by creating a space for Black History Month (BHM) and advocating for curricular reform. As a collective, these and other events and initiatives, including advocating for alumni to engage with and contribute to the footprint of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students in St Andrews, celebrate Black voices in St Andrews.
In my hometown, where the city is dominated by an unapologetic culture of Blackness and equally perturbed by the external marks of racial conflict, Black History Month was something impossible to forget. Yet here, in Scotland, and in St Andrews, where the money flowed, but the slaves did not go, the visceral nature of coloniality camouflages and we are forced to justify at every moment the relation of our history to this nation.
It would be simple to imagine that we, as Black students, find ourselves here for our own achievements and the prestige of the institution. To some extent this may be true, but there is a second explanatory dimension: we find ourselves here because of tumultuous and controversial histories.
My intent, however, is not to fixate upon the ways in which the University can be tied to colonialism or to Britain’s imperial wealth, but rather to suggest that our history, in many instances, is Britain’s History. It is Scotland’s history. In the case of the African continent and its diaspora, Black History Month should not simply be a concession to a minority community of students, but a form of recognition of our place in Britain’s history.
When we arrive in St Andrews, we see that we are students all the same. Like our peers we register for classes, attend orientations, and embrace the angst of a new environment. Yet also, we develop a sense that we are different; some discover this in the epithets and microaggressions, others with a feeling of imposter syndrome, and many realise suddenly when they see that they are not the subject of the literature nor the patient of the manual. It is this acute awareness, which some have been forced to develop from childhood, and which others are first confronted with in the halls of St Andrews, that beckons us to recognise our own history.
It is our mission, through student organisations such as the African Caribbean Society (ACS), to alleviate the pressures of this environment and to make clear the context of our being. This year, we are seeing continued efforts from the University to come to terms with history and advocate for progress, in the Race Equality Charter, in the Legacies of Empire project, and in general communication with our community and organisations.
This October was the second time we facilitated significant celebration and recognition of Black History Month (BHM) through social, academic, and developmental events. We hope to recognise our community’s footprint while also educating those around us.
Last year we kicked off BHM with our inaugural Panel of Power, hosting musician Bemz, Glasgow City Councillor Graham Campbell, activist Naana Otoo Oyortey, and Dr Khadija Owusu. Those discussions empowered our Black students to see Black success and provided a forum to discuss and transcend the struggle we embrace each day.
This year, in accordance with the BHM2023 theme ‘Saluting our Sisters’, we welcomed an equally accomplished panel of amazing Black women: Jenny Okolo, Elaine C Walker, Cara Dzivane, Aisha Janki Akinola, and Angie Mwafuriturala. We also organised social events such as ACS Sports Day, BHM Movie Night and our ACS Halloween Party.
ACS Committee members (standing L-R) Isaac Pickrum, Daka Zvekare, Wonder Lisungi, Jessica Kevwe, Samantha Floyd, Lorenzo Dragonetti, Nicole Tettey, Montella Simeon-Gordon, Aliya Trovoada, Zahra Gueye and Morgan John.
In collaboration with the University’s Libraries and Museums department, we facilitated a BHM display in the Main Library highlighting fiction, non-fiction and films written and produced by Black creatives. The works on display were influenced by Black students sharing the pieces that meant the most to them.
In addition, we began work with several societies, including the BAME Student Network, Women in Business, the Entrepreneurship Centre and creative collectives Pulse and THRILLR, to provide BHM events which extend beyond our society’s sphere. This was an opportunity to invite other communities to celebrate alongside us.
All in all, while we work to demonstrate the potency of Africa and the diaspora upon Britain and its culture, we find opportunities to beat the drum and have fun. I can only hope that the wider St Andrews community continues to support our efforts and finds joy in celebrating with us.
The Kaleidoscope Alumni Network is proud to have supported Panel of Power for Black History Month 2023. Along with the future alumni involved in making this flagship event happen, we hope that alumni might consider joining us in St Andrews for Panel of Power 2024. We would also love to hear how you are living, celebrating and/or observing African heritage before, after and during Black History Month.
Read more about the origins of Black History Month.