BLACK History Month has "flagged off" in Basingstoke.
A flag-raising ceremony marked the beginning of the mont-long celebrations dedicated to acknowledging the historical heritage of black people in the community was held at the Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council Civic Offices next to the War Memorial Park on Tuesday, October 1.
A number of events took place throughout the day, beginning with the hoisting of the Black History Month flag in by the Mayor of Basingstoke and Deane, Cllr Dan Putty, with a cross-section of community leaders in attendance.
At the flag-raising event, Mayor Putty acknowledged the good work the black community has been doing to raise awareness to the needs of the community at large and expressed his desire to continue to work with every section of Basingstoke to raise the standards of our town.
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Dr Tunde, President of the Africa United movement representing the African community in the town, said of the occasion: "It’s actually quite good that the Borough Council has found it appropriate to put an event like this on show for a second year running.
"I am happy with their initiative. And I am also happy with the turnout.
"The theme ‘reclaiming the narrative’ is very apt in this sense as I’m sure many people in the black community of this town will feel that there is a recognition for them and what they stand for historically in the town. And that’s good. The event was well attended and all manner of community groups were in attendance.
"It certainly means a lot to me to see this happen. And it will mean even more when we start to see the manifestation of the dreams, aspirations and yearnings of the black youth, Africans included, of course, realised in a fair and favourable environment that is, Basingstoke."
An evening event was also held in the council's offices, attended by a number of Basingstoke's leading black members of the community, including Dr Tunde, as well as Zaliha Paraiso-Ali of Hampshire Constabulary and Effie Grant-Blankson of Kikoi Connection who all gave speeches.
Principal of BCoT Anthony Bravo, Serjeant-at-Arms in the House of Commons Ugbana Oyet as well as the Mayor of Basingstoke and Deane, Dan Putty were all in attendance.
Dr Tunde spoke up for the African people and also put in a word on the need to use sport to engage with the youth and give them a "can-do mentality," in his words.
Youth Christian pastor Sochi Ezeanowai was also in attendance and gave a talk on using religion to connect with youngsters and give them a balance to help avert mental health issues.
Dr Tunde explained how at the event, panellists took turns to speak about "their journey as black people in a predominantly white community.
"How they have weathered it over the years and how the youth can benefit from the wealth of their experience in handling what life throws at them, all in the expectation that society will treat them more as equals now, more than before."
The theme of this year’s Black History Month is ‘Reclaiming Narratives’ and speakers gave interventions on how it is needed to change the narratives of how the black person is perceived in the society.
More activities are also planned for throughout the month.
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