CASA Contact
Please contact info@thisisblackbritain.co.uk for more information.
This Is Black Britain is a hub for African and Caribbean histories in Britain. The project collates the various strands of biographical research into Black lives in Britain across the UK into one free-to-use historical interactive map. The map will geographically pinpoint the known locations/residences of individual black figures and organisations from every community and echelon of British society and provide original biographies for each individual.
A new research network is being developed to develop the biographies. In this consolidation of current research, This is Black Britain will provide an essential platform for all researchers in Black British history (including community/grassroots history groups, archives, early career historians, and independent researchers) to publish historical content, nationally, for public audiences. The project will be a critical, easy-access research and educational tool for the public to engage with the histories of African and Caribbean individuals and organisations across centuries.
Building on lead researcher Montaz Marché’s research into eighteenth-century black women alongside UCL projects such as The City of Women London Project and the Windrush Cricket Project, the This is Black Britain hub is a community-led initiative which has been awarded the UCL Community Development Fund to develop the relationships established during previous projects, engage new relationships with historical community groups and institutions, particularly in East London, establish partnerships with them and facilitate new research into diverse Black histories. The network that will develop from these relationship-building actions will be the foundation of the This is Black Britain hub. Additionally, this funding will facilitate a workshop to strategise with our network about the hub’s design, content and outreach.
The map is currently under development and will launch in time for Black History Month in October 2024.
