Every time it comes to this time of the month I get quite excited. Not only are we so close to Christmas but it’s also Black History Month!
This year more than ever, there has been an outpouring of many small and large black-owned businesses, which I for one did not know much about. I had the privilege of going to a few black-owned business expositions and seeing all the various different businesses in the north and south from food to skin care. After speaking to most of them, I could see how their goods and trades have such a history to them, going back generations. You had family businesses that started in the Caribbean and are now being passed down to the grandchildren, skincare products that are imported from Africa and foods from different black cultures that hold so much flavour! It really opened my eyes to see how much there is out there and how much potential there is within the black culture and it’s not something to be shunned upon anymore.
Black culture is rich, vibrant and zestful! There is just so much left to discover and I feel that each year the Black culture is being accepted more and more by the public. Growing up as a young black girl in the UK, I found it rare to see black culture and history being advertised on TV, but it’s almost becoming the norm, which is incredibly refreshing to see. Major breakfast shows such a GMB choosing to dedicate every Friday of the month to showcase black culture and history makes me quite proud and very optimistic about the future and how empowering it will be for the next generation who are growing up, seeing this on their screens.
Since the pandemic, I’ve seen both the negative and positive sides when it comes to making the world more inclusive and accepting of the Black culture and it really makes me proud to be an immigrant who has been raised in the UK most of my life.
It is never too late to learn about the black culture and history, no matter what race you are. There’s always something new and different and the more we invest into learning about how we can make this world a little more united, we’ll be helping those who are still growing up, trying to figure out who they are and where they belong and making the world a better place for them to grow up.