CRIME SCENE UK
~ Review of ‘Hard Stop’. Dir: George Amponsah
‘Hard Stop’ looks at the consequences of the police killing of Mark Duggan on Thurs 4 Aug 2011 through the impact it has on two of his closest friends. Marcus Knox and Kurtis Herville grew up with Mark on Tottenham’s Broadwater Farm Estate and throughout the film they recount the life they lived and their attempts to change their lives as they are forced to take on adult responsibilities. Marcus was actually a Muslim convert and had moved off the estate two years before the shooting to follow the faith but the injustice of Mark’s execution when he was unarmed draws him back into a life he had tried his best to get away from.
Filmed over two years the documentary is an emotional journey through the trials and tribulations of Afrikan men whose options are narrowed by virtue of the fact that the police continue to take revenge on the estate’s residents for the death on the estate of PC Keith Blakelock in October 1985 and the fact that all their attempts to link or frame anyone for that killing have come to nought. They forget that the cause of what happened in 1985 was that they pushed Cynthia Jarrett causing her to have a fatal heart attack while searching her house for her son, Floyd. When Floyd was eventually arrested for driving a stolen car it transpired the car was not even stolen!!! So his mother was killed for no reason, no crime and the police blame the community for that.
Marcus and Kurtis give an insight into the real life of highs and lows away from the media and police hype. When Marcus’s Probation Officer says he is gang-affiliated because he is part of Tottenham Man Dem you see how far the organs of the state are from the community they are meant to serve and protect as Marcus explains it’s just their way of describing people from Tottenham in London-Jamaican patois, same as ‘Brixton man dem’, ‘Hackney man dem’ and ‘Harlesden man dem’.
The film covers the perverse ruling that Mark Duggan was lawfully killed and that he had a gun but threw it 20 feet away unobserved as he was falling after being shot. Yet no-one on the scene – not the police, the taxi driver or the person who filmed the incident from the flats overlooking the killing – and no jury, judge or lawyer was able to explain how this miracle of science happened when Mark was being followed and closely observed by the police.
Having attended the report back meeting in Tottenham when Stafford Scott and Mark Duggan’s family campaign outlined the absence of logic in the verdict I was left a bit confused by the film as while I appreciate it may not be easy to get a neat story arc there was no mention even in passing of Kevin Hutchison-Foster anywhere in the film. He is the person who supposedly gave Mark Duggan a ‘hot’ firearm that had been used to pistol whip a barber a few months earlier. The police claim Hutchison-Foster had three guns but to this day no mention has been made of what happened to the other two. The police took three months to arrest Hutchison-Foster claiming they couldn’t find him even though he was living in a bail hostel directly behind Stoke Newington Police Station!!! The police claimed Mark Duggan was the 49th biggest gangster in the whole of Europe but they seemed in no hurry to arrest his alleged gun supplier giving him ample time and space to dispose of any evidence. Any film that doesn’t even touch on any of that side of the case has to be seen as flawed or missing an opportunity to record for posterity and wider dissemination what the real situation regarding the police killing of Mark Duggan was.
We are left with a situation in Britain where over 1,000 people have been killed after contact with the police and yet more in the prison, immigration and mental health systems yet there is little chance of getting a conviction of murder or manslaughter. More time the most that happens is the perpetrators are ‘given words of advice about future conduct’. We are still more likely to see state offenders go to jail for killing a dog than killing an Afrikan such is the racism within the criminal injustice system.
Afrikans are three times more likely to be tasered, more likely to be charged, remanded to custody, face a longer sentence or a higher fine and six times more likely to be stopped and searched (even though only 4% of searches lead to any charge and often not for what the stop was originally for but for police created charges such as resisting arrest, police assault or obstruction which wouldn’t have happened if the police had not carried out the stop in the first place). Yet the police say they can’t work out the reason from their own statistics for these situations. Of 245 complaints of racism against the police that were concluded from March 2014 to February 2015, no action was taken in 240 of the cases. In the remaining five, the Met took “management action”. Several officers had more than one complaint against them with five unnamed officers each facing three or more allegations of racism none of which resulted in any action. The force defended the blanket exoneration, saying complaints were often due to “a simple misunderstanding or poor communication”. And just when you think it couldn’t get any lower the National Crime Agency have gone back to the police corruption case that sabotaged the conviction of the murderers of Stephen Lawrence 22 years ago. Everybody with half a brain knew the South East Regional Crime Squad had links to major criminals often hanging out together on the Costa del Crime.
CRIME SCENE USA
The documentary ‘3½ Minutes, 10 Bullets’, looks at the killing of unarmed Jordan Davis in Florida by a white man who through his prejudice and paranoia imagined Jordan was armed when it was actually himself who had a gun. In America they dress this up as a law called ‘stand your ground’ which means that you can shoot someone dead if you have any notion that they might be a threat to you. Trick or treaters have been killed for knocking on people’s doors as have motorists whose cars have broken down who have approached people for assistance. However, this defence only seems to be used by white people even though Afrikans in America would have a very justified case for shooting many white Americans given their history of perpetrating slavery, torture, brutality, criminalisation, land thefts, enclosure, assassinations, coups, chemical warfare and dropping nuclear bombs on unsuspecting civilian populations on two occasions.
Jordan Davis was shot while sitting in a car with his friends at a petrol station in Jacksonville, Florida, for refusing to turn his music down by a driver Michael Dunn who didn’t like rap music. Although it’s more likely he just didn’t like Afrikans. In all he fired 10 shots in two bursts even though no-one had offered him any physical threat of violence. Luckily he was eventually convicted of first degree murder but only after a retrial as many Americans actually endorse their gun law madness regardless of how many innocent people get killed and the first trial was declared a mistrial as the jury couldn’t reach a verdict. Michael Dunn was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole. The sentence also carries an additional 90 years for three previous convictions of attempted murder of Jordan’s three friends — 30 consecutive years for each count — and 15 concurrent years for firing a gun into an occupied vehicle.
Meanwhile, a grand jury is preparing to hear the murder case of Officer Timothy Loehmann who killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice claiming he thought he was 20-years-old and had a real gun even though the witness who called it in said they were children playing in a park and it was probably a toy gun.
A settlement has been reached win the case of Walter Scott who was shot multiple times in the back by Officer Michael Slager while running away in North Charleston, South Carolina. Walter Scott’s family will receive around $6m for the loss of life and violation of rights. Officer Slager is in prison on bail awaiting trial for murder. This follows on from the multi-million dollar settlement made by the city of New York and the NYPD to the family of Eric Garner who was suffocated in an illegal chokehold by police who claimed he was selling cigarettes.
NUBIART DIARY AFRIKAN HISTORY MONTH
For this year’s Nubiart Diary Afrikan History Month there will be an exhibition, ‘Triumph of the Grassroots: British Social History 1972-2012’ at the Brunei Gallery in London in conjunction with the Brunei Gallery and the Vince Hines Foundation. The exhibition looks at the work and struggles of the Vince Hines Foundation, part of the Self-Help Movement in Britain. Since its founding in 1972 activities they have engaged in include: the promotion of the National Federation of Self-Help Movements, establishing the Afrika and Diaspora institute, running the Connexions youth service in the borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, advice and support, community education, anti-knife and violent crime outreach, the African-Asian Solidarity Conference UK 1992, meals service, outdoor adventures, sports teams, day trips, and musical talent contests. A small selection from their archive will be on display here.
‘Triumph of the Grassroots: British Social History 1972-2012’ runs until Sat 12 Dec on Tues-Sat at 10.30am-5pm (late night Thurs til 8pm) at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC1H 0XG. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7898 4046. Web: www.soas.ac.uk/gallery
Vince Hines Foundation – Tel: 030 3040 2690. Fax: 0870 974 8524. E-mail: cmass@ubol.com
Web: www.ubol.com
FORTHCOMING NUBIART PROFILES
NUBIART: Focus on arts, business, education, health, political developments and the media.
OCT PROMOS
~ ‘AMPLIFICADOR – Various Artists [Far Out Recordings – Out Now] Far Out have stayed true to their label name as it would be easy to fill a Brazilian compilation with any amount of nuevo bossa and rousing sambas and passed it off as the most happening thing in the country. Instead they have gone for the less obvious but not lacking in quality for any of that. This 17-track album opens with the traditional sounds of Ive Seixas with ‘Cervejas Populares’ and a new take on MPB but across the selection there is a heavy bias towards the Afrobeat end of things which was a pleasant surprise. Abayomy, who formed directly out of a love for Fela’s music, pay tribute to ‘Obatala’. Iconili follow that with their ‘O Rei De Tupanga’. Zulumbi’s self-titled track is a good introduction to what they are about with the added Portuguese rap over the groove. Zebrabeat Afro-Amazonia Orquestra’s ‘Zebrabeat’ mixes the Afrobeat polyrhythms with the regional rhythms of Para state.
Andre Sampaio E Os Afromandinga are clearly inspired more by Ali Farka Toure and Afel Bocoum on their blues ‘Ecos de Niafunke’ but they nail that style so well you can easily picture those great men laying this down in Mali themselves. Luziluzia’s ‘Summertime’ and Fino Coletivo’s ‘Iracema’ are more jazzy and contemplative. The Baggios take the psychedelic rock route with guitar and horn section to the fore on ‘Esturia Leao’. While Burro Morto give the drumkit a good pounding on the instrumental ‘Lucifer Colombia’ which show frevo and forro influences.
DJ Dolores (actually a man) drops ‘O Amor Vai’ a swinging club dance track. It comes from the album ‘Banda Sonora musica para filmes’ so it’s part of the soundtracks being used in the vast Brazilian film industry. Os Sertoes’ ‘Flor de Saudade’ is a ska-tinged number while Aeromocas E Tenistas Russas go even further down that road with ‘Kilimanjaro Dub’ which has hints of Stevie Wonder in his ‘Master Blaster’ / ‘Hotter Than July’ phase in between the other ingredients in the melange. Motormama’s ‘Rio Grande’ is the closer to an album that is more varied in musical styles than originally expected but is a reflection of the diversity of talent and influences that make up Brazil and its music scenes
~ ‘ISLAND RECORDS PRESENTS REGGAE DISCOMIXES’ – Various Artists [Spectrum Records – Out Now] Rocksolid 22-track double-CD compilation from the golden age of roots and rub-a-dub reggae. Island Records deliver up some extended workouts from their vaults and the tracklisting speaks for itself. Truly there are no fillers here:
Disc 1
1. Idle Dog - Hosbah Lawrence & Trinity; 2. In The Midnight Hour / Ya Ya - George Faith; 3. Cool Meditation - Third World; 4. Ku Klux Klan - Steel Pulse; 5. Want Fi Goh Rave - Linton Kwesi Johnson; 6. Children of Sanchez – Rico; 7. Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner - Black Uhuru; 8. Old Broom - Wailing Souls; 9. You Mean The World To Me - The Paragons; 10. Proverbs Extraction - Pablo Moses; 11. Pass The Kouchie / Pass The Knowledge - The Mighty Diamonds
Disc 2
1. Dreadlocks In The Moonlight - Lee Perry; 2. Carry Go Bring Come - Justin Hinds & The Dominoes; 3. Memories - Junior Murvin; 4. Prophecy – Fabian; 5. Civilized Reggae - Burning Spear; 6. We ‘A’ Rockers - Inner Circle; 7. Chatty Chatty - Toots & The Maytals; 8. Fight To The Top - Michael Prophet; 9. Warrior Charge – Aswad; 10. Lovers Rocking & Skanking - Tony Tuff; 11. Cool Down The Pace - Gregory Isaacs
The album kicks off with a tribute to all the artists and musicians who hung out down at Idler’s Rest waiting for a shout from a producer or singer to come to work. Jamaican roots classics come from Burning Spear’s ‘Civilized Reggae’, Wailing Souls, The Mighty Diamonds, Black Uhuru, Third World, Justin Hinds & The Dominoes, Junior Murvin, Michael Prophet and Toots & The Maytals. I’d half forgotten that both ‘Proverbs Extraction’ and Fabian’s ‘Prophecy’ were from the Island stable as I linked them to their release on other labels. There is jazzy-reggae from Rico and yard lovers from the eternally Cool Ruler, Tony Tuff, George Faith and The Paragons. The ‘British’ contingent are not ignored with Steel Pulse, LKJ, and even in this company Aswad’s ‘Warrior Charge’ still sounds as immediate and life-affirming as it did on that first hearing – you can never tire of watching Blue voice out over it in ‘Babylon’, still one of the greatest scenes in cinema history.
I remember the first Island 12” that I came across was The Meditations ‘Much Smarter’ Pre-Release which belonged to one of my sisters. For years I hunted round all the record shops trying to get my own copy and I assumed the distributors were just stalling me but it turns out that was one of the records - along with The Congos ‘Heart of the Congos’ - that got caught up in the dispute between Lee Perry and Chris Blackwell when Scratch pulled all his content that wasn’t fully released from the label so the 7” version of ‘Much Smarter’ that he put out was not as dread and heavy as the Island pre. Ten years ago I wouldn’t have been happy if Island had put out a discomix compilation and not included that track but with the repress, re-release and download market there’s an easier way to get access to a lot of tunes than traipsing round dusty shops or paying silly amounts of ‘hard-earned’ cash.
~ ‘SALENTO JAMDOWN’ – Sud Sound System [Adriatic Sound – Out Now] Mixtape CD coming out of Italy of modern roots reggae in the first half and dancehall. There are Jamaican and Italian artists here and most of the songs are likewise a mix of the two languages. Luckily it’s not a juggling mixtape where you only get 30 seconds of a track with some selector talking inanities all over the actual track. There’s some quality artists here including Capleton, Anthony ‘Gunshot’ Johnson, Jah Mason, Morgan Heritage and Luciano. While on the upfront line-up is Kiprich, a very impressive vocal style from Miss Trinity, Daddy Freddy (once considered the fastest DJ in the world), Alozade, Esco, General Levy, Bling Dog, Chico, Voicemail, Doctor Evil and TOK. Standout track is easily Luciano’s heartfelt ‘Lampedusa’:
‘This is Luciano in association with Sud Sound System and the Salento family paying homage to the brave pioneers who set sail in treacherous waters seeking for brighter shores…
Though waters are turbulent
Raging hard with the desperate
Brave souls seeking for betterment
Putting their own lives in detriment
Leaving loved ones behind
Hoping that they would find
Even a slice of paradise
Making the ultimate sacrifice…
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row…
Human souls are constantly
Reaching out for survival
Seeking better perpetually
Preserving life is essential.
Though they don’t know
What the future holds
Yet still they go
Searching for better shores
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row.’
NUBIART LIBRARY – OCT MEDIA
We will only review books we have read and DVDs we have seen and that are available at reasonable prices online or in shops or libraries. However, given the nature and current state of Afrikan publishing and film production there may be books and films on this list that are worth the extra effort to track down.
~ ‘ADRIFT: PEOPLE OF A LESSER GOD’. Dir: Dominique C Mollard [Simply Media] ‘God is great, until we die.’ The director Dominique C. Mollard is also the reporter in this documentary about Afrikans leaving the continent searching for a better life and future. Here it is from the Mauritanian / Senegalese coast to the Canary Islands, which although off Afrika’s west coast technically meant they had landed in Spain. The journey takes five days in small pirogues but it is in hostile seas and because of the trade winds without a good navigator your boat could end up in south America months later with skeletons if it doesn’t sink before then. From 2005-2009 60,000 Afrikans made the journey and at least 5,500 bodies were washed ashore. For many Afrikans this was the main way into Europe until the ‘Arab Spring’ opened up the route from Tunisia and Libya to Lampedusa. Since then the instability in the Middle East has opened up the route to Greece and increased traffic on the notorious Balkan route through Turkey into Eastern Europe.
Mollard spent nearly two years interviewing migrants in Mauritania and Senegal - several of whom have attempted the trip already either turning back or having been deported - before undertaking the crossing with 38 Afrikan migrants, among them a five-month-old baby. Reasons for them wanting to leave included the locals fishing fleet being decimated by larger fish factory ships who scooped up all the catch leaving nothing for the small-scale fishermen; the rising militant Islam outlawing activities in various countries; wanting to connect with relatives; hoping for financial success in a pool of increasing poverty; following the wealth and resources that have been exploited and expropriated from Afrika by corrupt corporations and governments; and continued slavery and discrimination in Mauritania despite laws outlawing such practices.
Spain has various agreements with Afrikan countries about coping with the migrants. An agreement with Mali was that any Malians who reached the Canaries would be deported back to Mali. While people in boats on the high seas expect to be picked up by ships and handed over to the Spanish marine patrol or civil guard but sometimes it doesn’t work out that way, by accident or design, and instead people are handed over to the Moroccan navy. This also means being deported back to their country of origin or to the points of embarkation, ie Mauritania or Senegal, to try again as soon as enough money has been raised or the next favourable crossing time comes along. If political stability, economic development and a fairer share of the resource wealth are not forthcoming then the situation on the continent will continue to reflect what one person said in ‘Adrift’: ‘Africa is dying a slow death, assisted by the rest of the world.’
We welcome feedback on any event you have attended that was listed in Nubiart Diary. It helps us with the selection of future listings and is also info we can pass on to the event organisers where appropriate.
~ BASSEKOU KOUYATÉ: UK LIVE DATES + NEW VIDEO. Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba’s fourth album ‘Ba Power’ is a striking, career defining record marked by mesmerizing songs, razor-sharp riffs and full-throttle emotions. ‘Ba Power’ contains all the swagger, precision and wide-eyed excitement that the title implies. It is the album where Bassekou’s music engages with the world in ways he could have only imagined 10 years before. It is the album where he confirms his status amongst the 21st century’s most relevant musical artists. ‘Musow Fanga’ (meaning ‘Power of Women’) is the second single taken from the album, and with it in hand.
- On Mon 19 Oct at 8pm at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall (Music Room), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Hope Street, Liverpool L1 9BP. Adm: £16. Web: http://www.liverpoolphil.com/17931/events-contemporary-music/bassekou-kouyate.html
- On Tues 20 Oct at 8.30pm at The Lantern, Colston Hall, Colston Street, Bristol, BS1 5AR. Adm: £16.50. Web: http://www.colstonhall.org/shows/bassekou-kouyate-and-ngoni-ba/
- On Thurs 22 Oct at 8pm at Firth Hall, Firth Court, Western Bank, Sheffield University, Sheffield S10 2TN. Tickets: £14 adv. (Conc. £12 / Students £5) / £16 on the door (Conc. £14 / Students £6)
NB: A TalkingGigs where Bassekou will be discussing his music and life with Andy Morgan, interspersed by musical interludes (solo / duet, etc). Web: http://concerts.sheffield.ac.uk/whats-on/global-soundtracks-bassekou-kouyate
- On Fri 23 Oct at 7.45pm at Howard Assembly Room, 46 New Briggate, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6NU. Adm: £17.50 (Conc. £14.50 - £15.75) Web: http://www.operanorth.co.uk/howard-assembly-room / http://www.operanorth.co.uk/productions/bassekou-kouyate-sings-the-blues
Bassekou Kouyaté: http://bassekoukouyate.com/
Twitter: @Bassekou http://twitter.com/Bassekou
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bassekou-Kouyat%C3%A9/39291943354?fref=ts
Glitterbeat Records: http://glitterbeat.com/
Twitter: @Glitterbeat_Rec https://twitter.com/Glitterbeat_Rec
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Glitterbeat
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/glitterbeattv
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/glitterbeat
~ THE NEW BLACK FILM COLLECTIVE AND BLACK HISTORY STUDIES PRESENT ‘CIVILISED CINEMA: THE FIGHT FOR EQUAL RIGHTS ON SCREEN’. The New Black Film Collective’s Black History Month 2015 programme features this inspirational series of films and events commemorating 50 years since the passing of the British Race Relations Act, voting rights in the US, the assassination of Malcolm X and the 25th anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela which led to the abolition of apartheid.
The New Black Film Collective screenings below are all in the Stratford / Bow area of London:
- ‘Looking for Claudia Jones’ (U) & ‘Selma’ (15). On Tues 20 Oct at 6pm & 8pm at Genesis Cinema, London.
- ‘Masterclass: Black Political Narratives - Black Sections: past, present and future’. On Wed 21 Oct at 6-7.30pm at University Square Stratford, London.
- ‘Grove Roots’ (U). On Thurs 22 Oct at 6pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
- ‘The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution’ (12). On Thurs 22 Oct at 8.30pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London
- ‘Looking for Claudia Jones’ (U). On Thurs 29 Oct at 6pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
- ‘Masterclass: The Aliveness of Black Film’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 6.30-7.30pm at University Square Stratford, London.
- ‘Njinga (Nzinga), Queen of Angola. On Thurs 29 Oct at 8.30pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
Adm: Free. Tel: 020 8470 0692 / 07860 613 246. E-mail: priscilla@tnbfc.co.uk Web: www.tnbfc.co.uk
Black History Studies screenings:
- ‘Divided By Race. United In War And Peace’ (U). On Fri 23 Oct at 7.30pm. A powerful documentary about race relations in Britain during and after the Second World War. At its core are the testimonies of 14 surviving veterans, particularly those West Indian and Afrikan men and women who volunteered to join the war effort and soon afterwards returned to live in Britain. They risked their lives to serve under the Union Jack in time of war, then faced a second battle for the right to remain under that flag as British Citizens. Until now their stories have not been fully heard. Nor has the contribution they made been properly recognised, both in helping to win the war and in changing the face of British society. This film, brought to you by The-Latest.Com, Britain’s first dedicated citizen journalism website, seeks to both redress that balance and explore the sometimes painful evolution of our multi-cultural society. After the screening there will be a Q&A with the Director Marc Wadsworth
- ‘Fast Girls’ (PG). On Friday 30th October 2015 at 7.30pm. When sassy streetwise Shania (Lenora Crichlow) meets ambitious, middle class Lisa (Lily James), their two worlds collide on the athletics track with explosive results. As the fast girls strive to qualify for a major world athletics championship, they battle adversity and rivalry on their dramatic, heart-warming and inspirational journey.
All screenings at the Bernie Grant Arts Centre, Town Hall Approach Road, Tottenham, London, N15 4RX. Adm: Free. Tel / Fax: 020 8881 0660. Mobile: 07951 234 233. E-mail: info@blackhistorystudies.com Web: http://www.blackhistorystudies.com
~ ‘MALCOLM X’ SCREENING. On Tues 20 Oct at 5-7pm at the Idea Store, Chrisp Street, 1 Vesey Path, East India Dock Road, London, E14 6BT. Tel: 020 7364 4332. E-mail: ideastore@towerhamlets.gov.uk Web: www.ideastore.co.uk
~ LIGALI ‘BEAUTY IS…’ SCREENINGS
- On Thurs 22 Oct at 7pm at Leicester African Centre, Maidstone Road, Leicester, LE2 OUA. Tel: 0116 216 6320. E-mail: leicesterbhconsortium@hotmail.com Screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Toyin Agbetu. Organised by the Leicester Black History Consortium.
- On Wed 28 Oct at 5pm at London School of Economics, Alumni Theatre, New Academic Building, 54 Lincoln’s inn Fields, London, WC2A 3LJ. Adm: Free (Booking Required). With the topic of ‘Black Beauty’ back under the media spotlight, the debate that follows the screening with director Toyin Agbetu and contributors promises to be an important one. Organised by Embrace (Ethnic Minorities Broadening Racial Awareness & Cultural Exchange).
~ SHEBA MONTSERRAT PRODUCTIONS PRESENT
- ‘The Word Revolution’. On Thurs 22 Oct at 7-8.30pm. Adm: Free. Using spoken word, comedy, poetry and dance Sheba Montserrat explores how the words and expressions we use reinforce racist and sexist mindsets.
- ‘A Tribute to John Bubbles’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 7-8.30pm. Adm: Free. Blu pays tribute to vaudeville performer, dancer and singer John W Bubbles, known as the father of ‘rhythm tap’.
Both events at Coombes Croft Library, Tottenham High Road, London, N17 8AG. Tel: 020 8489 8771.
~ BLACK CULTURAL ARCHIVES PRESENT
- ‘Black Georgians: The Shock Of The Familiar’ Exhibition. Tues-Sat at 10am-6pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Treasures in the Archives: Black People in Lambeth’s 18th Century Parish’. On Thurs 22 Oct at 1pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Treasures in the Archives: The Life of Ignatius Sancho’. On Thurs 5 Nov at 1pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Len Garrison Memorial Lecture: Gaps in Black British History’. On Thurs 12 Nov at 4.45-8.30pm at the Institute of Historical Research, Senate House, Malet Street, UCL, London. Adm: £20 / £15 concs. Talks by BBC producer David Olusoga, historian and publisher marika Sherwood and freelance journalist Miranda Kaufmann.
All events (unless otherwise stated) at Black Cultural Archives, Windrush Square, Brixton, London, SW2 1EF. Tel: 020 3757 8500. Web: www.bcaheritage.org.uk
~ ‘UNDERDOGS’. Exhibition of new works by Adjani Ekpe-Ogbu. Including responses to the #BlackLivesMatter and #ICantBreathe campaigns against police killings and brutality towards Afrikans. Until Thurs 22 Oct at Mok Space Gallery, 33 Museum Street, London, WC1A 1LH. Tel: 07931 887 389. Web: adjaniokpuegbe.com
~ BLACK STOCK FILMS PRESENTS ‘LOOKING FOR CLAUDIA JONES’. Dir: Nia Reynolds. Screening followed by Q&A. On Fri 23 Oct at 7pm at Brixton Library, Brixton Oval, London, SW2 1JQ. Adm: £7. Tel: 020 7926 1056.
~ AN INVITATION TO JOIN KADIJA SESAY & FRIENDS
- ‘Black Her-Story’ with Laura Fish, Dorothea Smartt & Kadija Sesay. On Fri 23 Oct at 6.30pm at George Wood Theatre, Goldsmiths University, London, SE4. Web: https://blackher-story.evenbrite.co.uk
- ‘Black Lives Matter: The Past, Present, Future of an International Movement for Rights and Justice (Conference). On Wed 28 Oct at Nottingham Contemporary, Weekday Cross, Nottingham, NG1 2GB. Tel: 0115 948 9750. Web: http://www.octoberdialogues.org/programme.html
~ BLACK HISTORY WALKS
- African Animations Film Festival: ‘Kirikou and the Sorceress’ on Sat 24 Oct at 12pm’; ‘Spirit of the Pharaoh’, ‘Bluefields’ & ‘Tropical Island’ premiere on Sun 25 Oct at 2pm; ‘Kirikou and the Men and Women’ on Mon 26 Oct at 11am; ‘Zarafa’ on Fri 30 Oct at 1pm.
- ‘Njinga’. On Sat 7 Nov at 6.30pm.
All screenings at the Phoenix Cinema, 52 High Road, East Finchley, London, N2. Tel: 020 8444 6789. Web: www.phoenixcinema.co.uk
~ EQUIANO SOCIETY CELEBRATING THE LIFE AND TIMES OF PAUL BOGLE (1820 – 24TH OCTOBER 1865) COMMEMORATING THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS ‘DEATH’. There will be a screening of ‘Catch A Fire’, Menelik Shabazz’s biography of Paul Bogle. On Sat 24 Oct at 3.30-5.30pm at Karibu Educational Centre, 7 Gresham Road, London, SW9 7PH.
~ BRITISHBLACKMUSIC.COM/BLACK MUSIC CONGRESS PRESENTS
- ‘British History 50:70 / Is Jesus White?’ On Sat 24 Oct at 5-8pm at Clapham Common Methodist Church Hall, Nelson’s Row, London, SW4 7JR. Adm: Free. Web: http://bit.ly/Br5070 An audio-visual presentation by history consultant Kwaku on Christian iconography which puts Jesus and Christianity into a historical context that links to the present. It covers religion, art, identity and impact of the usual portrayal of “whiteness” against the seldom portrayal of the “other” or “blackness” within Christian iconography. Funds raised will go towards the Queen Mother Moore School. For campaign details contact Prof Gus John on: gj@gusjohn.com.
- ‘Look How Far We’ve Come Community Talk - Is Jesus White?’ On Wed 28 Oct at 6.30-9pm at Croydon BME Forum, CR0 3PB. An audio-visual presentation on Christian iconography by history consultant Kwaku, which puts Jesus and Christianity into a historical context that links to the present. It covers religion, art, identity and impact of the usual portrayal of “whiteness” against the seldom portrayal of the “other” or “blackness” within Christian iconography.
- ‘Look How Far We Have Come’ Film Screening and Discussion. On Thurs 29 Oct at 5pm at Tate South Lambeth Library, London, SW8 1QP. Tel: 020 7926 0705. History consultant Kwaku examines the question of racial equality in Britain for young people 14+ (& parents/family).
- The Black Music Research Unit (BMRU) Annual Seminar. On 31 Oct at the University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5LS.
- Taking From Eric Williams’ ‘Capitalism & Slavery’. On Mon 2 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Harrow Mencap, 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com / http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL Presentation and discussion led by Cecil Gutzmore.
- ‘Creators’ Rights In The Digital Landscape’. On Tues 10 Nov at 6.30-9pm at Fyvie Hall, UoW, 309 Regent St. London, W1B 2UW. Adm: MT members - £20 / Standard - £30 / Students - £15. With Fiona McGugan FAC & MMF; Horace Trubridge, Assistant General Secretary, MU; Benoît Machuel, General Secretary, FIM; and Alexander Ross, Partner, Wiggin LLP. Chaired by MusicTank chair, Keith Harris.
- ‘Africans In Classical Music’. On Mon 16 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Harrow Mencap 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. Adm: Free. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL
Led by Kwaku.
- ‘History Of African Media In Britain’. On Mon 30 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm @ Harrow Mencap 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. Adm: Free. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com With history consultant Kwaku and media consultant Neil Kenlock http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL
For BBM/BMC events e-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com
~ MARIAN GOODMAN GALLERY PRESENTS WILLIAM KENTRIDGE’S ‘MORE SWEETLY PLAY THE DANCE’ includes two immersive multiscreen film installations, monumental ink-on-paper paintings, sculptures and drawings. The upper gallery is dedicated to the show title, More Sweetly Play the Dance’, an eight-screen processionary danse macabre. But, beyond the medieval notion of dancing as a means of staving off death, as this 40 metre, life-sized, circular caravan traverses around us, one senses that it’s as much a cortege of those who have been deprived of a fully realised life – yet another procession of refugees fleeing a skirmish or warlord. Most of the itinerants are filmed holding up silhouettes transcribed from enlarged Kentridge drawings as they march. Kentridge’s long-time collaborator Dada Masilo brings up the rear, dancing en pointe with a rifle to the last strains of their canticle, as if single-handedly “hold[ing] the hope and disillusion together”.
Downstairs, Kentridge presents ‘Notes Towards a Model Opera’, a three-screen film installation that grew from his research for a recent exhibition at the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing. He found himself repeatedly drawn to Madame Mao’s Eight Model Revolutionary Operas, which conflated vainglorious folklore, jingoistic re-presentations of military victories, martial arts and ballet. The soundtrack for the piece, arranged by the composer Philip Miller, is based on various elaborations of the communist anthem ‘The Internationale’ ranging in style from period 1950s colonial dance bands to South African toyi-toyi chanting protest marches. Until 24 Oct on Tues-Sat at 10am-6pm at Marian Goodman Gallery, 5-8 Lower John Street, London, Tel: Charlie Dunnery McCracken on 020 7099 0088. E-mail: charlie@mariangoodman.com
~ ISLINGTON BHM SCREENING OF ‘THE SUPREME PRICE’ + DIRECTOR Q&A. Dir: Joanna Lipper. In 1993 Nigeria elected M.K.O. Abiola as president in a historic democratic vote that promised to end years of military dictatorship. Shortly after the election, Abiola’s victory was annulled. General Sani Abacha seized power in a military coup and arrested M.K.O Abiola. During her husband’s incarceration, M.K.O Abiola’s wife, Kudirat, took over the leadership of the pro-democracy movement, organising strikes and marches and winning international attention for the Nigerian struggle. Because of this work, she too became a target and was assassinated. Director Joanna Lipper explores past and present as she tells this deeply moving and intriguing story through the eyes of the Abiola’s eldest daughter, Hafsat Abiola, who was about to graduate from Harvard when her mother was murdered. Her father died in prison two years later under mysterious circumstances. Determined not to let her parents’ democratic ideals die with them, Hafsat returns to Nigeria after years in exile and is at the forefront of a progressive movement to empower women and dismantle the patriarchal structure of Nigerian society. Screening will be followed by a Q&A with the Producer/Director Joanna Lipper and Lela Kogbara, Assistant Chief Executive (Islington Council). On Mon 26 Oct at 7.30pm at King’s Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG. Adm: £9.50.
~ CONTEMPORARY ARTS RESEARCH PRESENT ‘MIS-CONNECTIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ART WORLDS’. Seminar led by Hassan Musa. On Tues 27 Oct at 7-9pm at Room B111, Brunei Building, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1H 0XG.
~ THE GREAT PHYSICIAN INTERNATIONAL PRESENTS ‘THE ANCIENT WAYS’ SEMINARS
- With Hon Prophet Newton on ‘The Coconut Workshop: Oil and Pastries’; Dr Majeena Lynch on ‘The Immune System – Demystified’; Hon Priest Isaac on ‘The Healing Power of The Mind – Ye are all Gods’; and Rt Hon Priest Kailash Leonce on ‘Zero Tolerance to Dis-ease’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 6.30pm at Chestnuts Community Centre, St Ann’s Road, London, N15 5BN. Adm: £10 (adv) ‘ £15 (OTD).
- With Hon Prophet Newton on ‘The Coconut Workshop: Coconut as a Food’; Dr Majeena Lynch on ‘When is Inflammation NOT Beneficial’; Hon Priest Isaac on ‘The Metaphysics of Rastafari’; and Rt Hon Priest Kailash Leonce on ‘Natural Cures We Need to Know’. On Sun 1 Nov at 4pm at Karibu Education Centre, 7 Gresham Rd, London, SW9 7PH. Adm: £10 (adv) / £15 (OTD).
For tickets to both events tel: 07984 995 347 / 07580 378 237. E-mail: priestkailash@gmail.com
/ foodof7@hotmail.com Web: www.priestkailash.com
~ ‘UNTOLD MEMORIES’. Exhibition of paintings by Mozambican artist Nataniel Moiane depicting dialogues between continents and cultures. Until 30 Oct at Mon-Fri at 9am-6pm and Sat 10.30am-5pm at Brady Arts Centre, 192-196 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5HU. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7364 7900. E-mail: nataniel.moiane@gmx.com Web: www.natanielmoiane.com
~ ADINKRA ARTS COLLECTIVE PRESENT ‘HELP ME AND LET ME HELP YOU’. Film screenings, spoken word, self-employment workshops and an Afrikan market. On Fri 30 Oct at 6-9pm and Sat 31 Oct at 12-8pm at Bell Gardens Community Centre, 19 Buller Close, London, SE15 6UJ. Tel: 07827 537 519. E-mail: orvilkunga@gmail.com Web: www.facebook.com/adinkraartscollective.org
~ CLASSIQUES BLACK HISTORY MONTH PARTY SPECIAL. Your premier party experience bringing you the very best in 70’s, 80’s & 90’s classics. DJs: Natural Mystic, Bobo El Numero Uno and Vibemaster. All proceeds go towards the Alkebu-Lan Academy of Excellence! (Saturday School) and MAAT Academy of Excellence! (Home Schooling Collective). On Fri 30 Oct at 10pm at Large Lounge, 119 Harrow Road, Leytonstone, London, E11 3PX. Adm: £10 (adv). Tickets: Mama Afrika Kulcha Shap, 282 High Road Leyton, London, E10 5PW. Tel: 020 8539 2154 / 07939 292 720 / 07889 281 809. Web: https://shoobs.com/events/9165/classiques-70-s-80-s-90-s-at-its-finest
~ RAS PRESENTS ‘FILM AFRICA’. London’s premier Afrikan film event will showcase the best new features, documentaries and short films from across the continent and diaspora. For its fifth anniversary, Film Africa will present 60 films from 26 different Afrikan countries, including several London, UK, European and World Premieres. 15 visiting filmmakers will present their films in London representing Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Ethiopia, South Africa, Angola, Algeria and the Diaspora. Opening this year’s festival is ‘Run’, the debut feature from Ivorian director Philippe Lacôte. Fresh from its Cannes Un Certain Regard screening and Jury Prize win at FESPACO, Run is an extraordinarily cinematic and poetic work on Ivory Coast’s historical conflicts. For the closing, Film Africa hosts the UK premiere of Lyes Salem’s ‘The Man From Oran’, an epic expose of Algeria’s turbulent political history following independence from France in 1962. There will be a special focus on Afrikan countries that were former portuguese colonies, ‘Lusophone Liberty: 40 Years On’, three exciting new features from Ethiopia and ‘Sembéne Focus: Double Bill’ at the British Library, as part of their West Africa: Cultures of the Word exhibition. Screenings run across London between Fri 30 Oct – Sun 8 Nov. For programme go to www.filmafrica.org.uk
~ UNITED FRIENDS AND FAMILY CAMPAIGN ANNUAL MARCH AND RALLY AGAINST DEATHS IN CUSTODY AND POLICE & STATE BRUTALITY. On Sat 31 Oct at 12pm from Trafalgar Square to Downing Street, London, WC1.
~ TIWANI CONTEMPORARY PRESENTS ‘THE MIRROR BALL CONSTELLATION’ EXHIBITION Since the early 1980s, Theo Eshetu has combined the formal components of film with anthropological ideas to examine the notion of culture itself. His manipulation of time and light leads to work that draws on themes and images from the artist’s dual European and African background. As one of the first artists to work exclusively with video art, Eshetu has contributed significantly to the medium’s recognition within the context of fine art. Eshetu’s long form essay-films and multiscreen video installations have gained him international recognition at numerous film festivals and museums. Tiwani Contemporary will show Eshetu’s acclaimed 2014 work Anima Mundi, an immersive multimedia and video installation, as well as the five-screen video installation Meditation Light (2006) and works from the photographic series The Mirror Ball Constellation (2013-2015). Theo Eshetu was born in 1958 in London and grew up in Addis Ababa, Dakar and London before establishing himself in Rome. He currently lives and works in Berlin. Exhibition continues until 31 Oct on Tues-Fri at 11am-6pm and Sat at 12-5pm at Tiwani Contemporary, 16 Little Portland Street, London. E-mail: info@tiwani.co.uk Web: www.tiwani.co.uk
~ RAS PRESENTS ‘KING OF KINGS - THE TRIUMPH & TRAGEDY OF EMPEROR HAILE SELASSIE I OF ETHIOPIA’. Haile Selassie I was a descendent of King Solomon and a forerunner of African unity and independence. He fought with the Allies against the fascist Axis powers during the Second World War and was a reformer and an autocrat, who was assassinated in a communist coup. Haile Selassie is brilliantly portrayed in King of Kings by his great-nephew Asfa-Wossen Asserate. On Mon 2 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS, Russell Square, London, WC1H 0XG. Adm: Free.
~ TATE BRITAIN SPOTLIGHT ON SANKOFA FILM & VIDEO - ‘MARTINA ATTILLE: DREAMING RIVERS’. The Autumn season of screenings at Tate Britain continues its spotlight on the visionary collective Sankofa Film and Video. It was established in 1983 by five aspiring filmmakers – Martina Attille, Maureen Blackwood, Robert Crusz, Isaac Julien and Nadine Marsh-Edwards, focused on the production of new black subjectivities and introducing audiences to black feminist theory and the politics and poetics of self-representation. This 30 minute short, shot in 16mm, in director Attille’s own words ‘illustrates the spirit of modern families touched by the experience of migration.’ Winner of Film Ducat at 1988 Mannheim Festival and other awards, this rarely seen work evocatively weaves together fragments of a solitary present, ambition-fuelled dreams and memories of the past. Caribbean-born Miss T.’s wake serves as the site for lyrical recollections from both those who live on and from Miss T. herself. The screening will be followed by artist Sonia Boyce MBE, Professor in Fine Art at Middlesex University (and set designer on Dreaming Rivers) in conversation with and Dr Amna Malik, Senior Lecturer in Art History and Theory at Slade School of Fine Art. On Mon 2 Nov at 7-8.30pm at Clore Auditorium, Tate Britain, Millbank, London, SW1. Adm: £5 / concs available.
~ LONDON SOCIALIST FILM CO-OP PRESENT ‘FAIR TRADE MATTERS’ AND ‘SHADOWS OF LIBERTY’. The first film looks at the working life of Edson, a tea farmer in Malawi. The second film analyses control and ownership of the media and news agenda. On Sun 8 Nov at 11am at Bolivar Hall, The Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, 54 Grafton Way, London, W1T 5DL. Adm: £10 / £8 – concs. Tel: 020 7278 5764. E-mail: nseyd@hotmail.com Web: www.socialistfilm.blogspot.com
~ ONE HAND CAN’T CLAP PRESENT ‘COMMON TIES’. Entrepreneur and coach Lorlett Hudson presents an evening guest speakers, cultural wisdom, spoken word and music. On Thurs 19 Nov at 6-9pm at Clapham Library, Mary Seacole Centre, 91 Clapham High Street, London, SW4 7DB. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7926 0717.
‘West Africa - Mission from cape’
~ ‘WEST AFRICA: WORD, SYMBOL, SONG’. An exhibition of literature and music – from the great African empires of the Middle Ages to the cultural dynamism of West Africa today using beautiful manuscripts, sound, film and more, tracing the written and oral cultural history of West Africa for the past three centuries. Fascinating stories from the region’s 17 nations show how West Africans have harnessed the power of words to build societies, drive political movements, sustain religious belief and fight injustice. Hear the myth of the founding of ancient Mali in recorded performance. See the influence of religion through colourful fabric and the saddlebag Qur’an. Celebrate writers and artists including Africa’s first Nobel prize winner, Wole Soyinka, and internationally acclaimed musician and human rights activist Fela Kuti. At the PACCAR Gallery, British Library, 96 Euston Road, London, NW1 2DB. Adm: £10 / Under-18s – Free / Concs available. Tel: +44 (0)1937 546 546. E-mail: boxoffice@bl.uk Web: http://www.bl.uk/events/west-africa-word-symbol-song
Syd Shelton, Bagga, vocalist with
Matumbi, Hackney, London, 1978
~ AUTOGRAPH ABP PRESENT ‘SYD SHELTON: ROCK AGAINST RACISM’. The first major exhibition of Syd Shelton’s photographs capturing one of the most intriguing and contradictory political periods in British post war history. Between 1976 and 1981, the Rock Against Racism (RAR) confronted racist ideology in the streets, parks and town halls of Britain. RAR was formed by a collective of musicians and political activists to fight fascism and racism through music. Under the slogan ‘Love Music, Hate Racism’, it showcased reggae and punk bands on the same stage, attracting large multi-cultural audiences. At a time when the fascist attitudes of the National Front were gaining support, RAR marked the rising resistance to violent and institutionalised racism. Shelton photographed performers such as The Clash, Elvis Costello, Misty in Roots, Tom Robinson, Au Pairs and The Specials as well as the audiences at RAR gigs and carnivals across England. He captured the history-making RAR Carnival at Victoria Park, London in 1978, and demonstrations such as the Anti National Front Demonstration in Lewisham in 1977. Shelton also took contextual social and cultural images that informed the politics of the movement across England and Ireland. Until 5 Dec on Tues, Wed & Fri at 11am–6pm, Thurs at 11am–9pm and Sat at 12–6pm at Autograph, Rivington Place, London, EC2A 3BA. Adm: Free. Tel: +44 (0)20 7729 9200. Fax +44 (0)20 7739 8748. E-mail: info@rivingtonplace.org
Hula dancers from the Hālau Nā
Kipuʻupuʻu group, Kaʻauea, Hawaiʻi,
Hawaiian Islands, 2011.
Photography: Dino Morrow.
~ BRITISH MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS AND EVENTS ‘SHIFTING PATTERNS: PACIFIC BARKCLOTH CLOTHING’. A selection of textiles from the Pacific used to wrap, drape and adorn the body in a myriad of styles and designs, these garments demonstrate the long history of barkcloth, and its ongoing relevance today. In the islands of the Pacific, cloth made from the inner bark of trees is a distinctive art tradition its designs reflect the histories of each island group and the creativity of the makers. Spanning the region from New Guinea in the west to Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in the east, the exhibition will show a selection of 77 garments, headdresses, masks and body adornments from the Museum’s collection dating from the 1700s to 2014, including those worn as everyday items and ceremonial costumes linked to key life cycle events such as initiation and marriage. Barkcloth is generally made and decorated by women, but garments intended for ritual purposes may be made by men. Until Sun 6 Dec at Room 91 at the British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC2. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7323 8181.
~ ‘AFRICAN THREADS, HACKNEY STYLE: 400 YEARS OF TEXTILES JOURNEYS FROM AFRICA TO HACKNEY’. This exhibition explores Hackney’s historic ties with Africa through fabric and fashion. Uncover their influence on the local area, from 17th century trade with West Afrika by Hackney merchants to the presence of Afrikan communities and textiles in Hackney today. Discover how textiles were produced in different regions of Afrika and the meaning behind some of their bold designs. The exhibition features stunning costumes, photographs and local people. At Hackney Museum, Technology And Learning Centre, 1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ.
~ ‘NO COLOUR BAR: BLACK BRITISH ART IN ACTION 1960-1990’. Exhibition of the archive of the Guyanese campaigners and publishers Eric and Jessica Huntley. Until Sun 24 Jan 2016 at Mon-Sat at 10am-5pm and Sun 12-4pm at Guildhall Art Gallery, Guildhall Yard, London, EC2V 5AE. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7332 3700. Twitter: @NoColourBar Web: www.nocolourbar.london
~ JENGBA MEETINGS. JENGbA campaigners can deliver lectures to Law, Criminology, Media, Sociology, Youth Studies departments as well as school children. On the second Tues of every month at 7pm at Edward Woods Community Centre, London, W11 4TX. Tel: 07709 115793 / 07725 727520 (Media Enquiries). New office: Office A, Norland House, Queensdale Cresent, London, W11 4TL. E-mail: JointEnterpriseInfo@Gmail.com / JengbaMedia@Gmail.com
~ BUNDU DIA KONGO (BDK). African cultural and spiritual group, working towards the spiritual and psychological growth and development of Africans all over the world. Let us make a positive change now. Our story pre-dates Egypt and continues today. Come and learn about African prophets, African history and African spiritual practices at our weekly Zikua.
- Sun at 1.30–4.30pm at 108 Battersea High Street, London, SW11 3HPTel: Makaba - 07951 059 853. E-mail: moyomakaba9@gmail.com
- Sun at 12.30–3.15pm at Malika House, 81 George Street, Lozells, Birmingham, B19 1Sl. Tel: Mbuta Mayala – 07404 789 329.
~ THE AUSAR AUSET SOCIETY GI GONG CLASSES. Every Monday at 7.30–9pm at Hazel Road Community Centre, Hazel Road, Kensal Green, London, NW10 5PP. Adm: £5 per class. Tel: 07951- 252-427. E-mail: Tauinetwork.europe@gmail.com
Contact: Kubara Zamani, Afrikan Quest International, PO Box 35165, London, SE5 8WU. Tel: 07811 494 969. E-mail: afrikanquest1@hotmail.com
~ Review of ‘Hard Stop’. Dir: George Amponsah
‘Hard Stop’ looks at the consequences of the police killing of Mark Duggan on Thurs 4 Aug 2011 through the impact it has on two of his closest friends. Marcus Knox and Kurtis Herville grew up with Mark on Tottenham’s Broadwater Farm Estate and throughout the film they recount the life they lived and their attempts to change their lives as they are forced to take on adult responsibilities. Marcus was actually a Muslim convert and had moved off the estate two years before the shooting to follow the faith but the injustice of Mark’s execution when he was unarmed draws him back into a life he had tried his best to get away from.
Filmed over two years the documentary is an emotional journey through the trials and tribulations of Afrikan men whose options are narrowed by virtue of the fact that the police continue to take revenge on the estate’s residents for the death on the estate of PC Keith Blakelock in October 1985 and the fact that all their attempts to link or frame anyone for that killing have come to nought. They forget that the cause of what happened in 1985 was that they pushed Cynthia Jarrett causing her to have a fatal heart attack while searching her house for her son, Floyd. When Floyd was eventually arrested for driving a stolen car it transpired the car was not even stolen!!! So his mother was killed for no reason, no crime and the police blame the community for that.
Marcus and Kurtis give an insight into the real life of highs and lows away from the media and police hype. When Marcus’s Probation Officer says he is gang-affiliated because he is part of Tottenham Man Dem you see how far the organs of the state are from the community they are meant to serve and protect as Marcus explains it’s just their way of describing people from Tottenham in London-Jamaican patois, same as ‘Brixton man dem’, ‘Hackney man dem’ and ‘Harlesden man dem’.
The film covers the perverse ruling that Mark Duggan was lawfully killed and that he had a gun but threw it 20 feet away unobserved as he was falling after being shot. Yet no-one on the scene – not the police, the taxi driver or the person who filmed the incident from the flats overlooking the killing – and no jury, judge or lawyer was able to explain how this miracle of science happened when Mark was being followed and closely observed by the police.
Having attended the report back meeting in Tottenham when Stafford Scott and Mark Duggan’s family campaign outlined the absence of logic in the verdict I was left a bit confused by the film as while I appreciate it may not be easy to get a neat story arc there was no mention even in passing of Kevin Hutchison-Foster anywhere in the film. He is the person who supposedly gave Mark Duggan a ‘hot’ firearm that had been used to pistol whip a barber a few months earlier. The police claim Hutchison-Foster had three guns but to this day no mention has been made of what happened to the other two. The police took three months to arrest Hutchison-Foster claiming they couldn’t find him even though he was living in a bail hostel directly behind Stoke Newington Police Station!!! The police claimed Mark Duggan was the 49th biggest gangster in the whole of Europe but they seemed in no hurry to arrest his alleged gun supplier giving him ample time and space to dispose of any evidence. Any film that doesn’t even touch on any of that side of the case has to be seen as flawed or missing an opportunity to record for posterity and wider dissemination what the real situation regarding the police killing of Mark Duggan was.
We are left with a situation in Britain where over 1,000 people have been killed after contact with the police and yet more in the prison, immigration and mental health systems yet there is little chance of getting a conviction of murder or manslaughter. More time the most that happens is the perpetrators are ‘given words of advice about future conduct’. We are still more likely to see state offenders go to jail for killing a dog than killing an Afrikan such is the racism within the criminal injustice system.
Afrikans are three times more likely to be tasered, more likely to be charged, remanded to custody, face a longer sentence or a higher fine and six times more likely to be stopped and searched (even though only 4% of searches lead to any charge and often not for what the stop was originally for but for police created charges such as resisting arrest, police assault or obstruction which wouldn’t have happened if the police had not carried out the stop in the first place). Yet the police say they can’t work out the reason from their own statistics for these situations. Of 245 complaints of racism against the police that were concluded from March 2014 to February 2015, no action was taken in 240 of the cases. In the remaining five, the Met took “management action”. Several officers had more than one complaint against them with five unnamed officers each facing three or more allegations of racism none of which resulted in any action. The force defended the blanket exoneration, saying complaints were often due to “a simple misunderstanding or poor communication”. And just when you think it couldn’t get any lower the National Crime Agency have gone back to the police corruption case that sabotaged the conviction of the murderers of Stephen Lawrence 22 years ago. Everybody with half a brain knew the South East Regional Crime Squad had links to major criminals often hanging out together on the Costa del Crime.
CRIME SCENE USA
The documentary ‘3½ Minutes, 10 Bullets’, looks at the killing of unarmed Jordan Davis in Florida by a white man who through his prejudice and paranoia imagined Jordan was armed when it was actually himself who had a gun. In America they dress this up as a law called ‘stand your ground’ which means that you can shoot someone dead if you have any notion that they might be a threat to you. Trick or treaters have been killed for knocking on people’s doors as have motorists whose cars have broken down who have approached people for assistance. However, this defence only seems to be used by white people even though Afrikans in America would have a very justified case for shooting many white Americans given their history of perpetrating slavery, torture, brutality, criminalisation, land thefts, enclosure, assassinations, coups, chemical warfare and dropping nuclear bombs on unsuspecting civilian populations on two occasions.
Jordan Davis was shot while sitting in a car with his friends at a petrol station in Jacksonville, Florida, for refusing to turn his music down by a driver Michael Dunn who didn’t like rap music. Although it’s more likely he just didn’t like Afrikans. In all he fired 10 shots in two bursts even though no-one had offered him any physical threat of violence. Luckily he was eventually convicted of first degree murder but only after a retrial as many Americans actually endorse their gun law madness regardless of how many innocent people get killed and the first trial was declared a mistrial as the jury couldn’t reach a verdict. Michael Dunn was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole. The sentence also carries an additional 90 years for three previous convictions of attempted murder of Jordan’s three friends — 30 consecutive years for each count — and 15 concurrent years for firing a gun into an occupied vehicle.
Meanwhile, a grand jury is preparing to hear the murder case of Officer Timothy Loehmann who killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice claiming he thought he was 20-years-old and had a real gun even though the witness who called it in said they were children playing in a park and it was probably a toy gun.
A settlement has been reached win the case of Walter Scott who was shot multiple times in the back by Officer Michael Slager while running away in North Charleston, South Carolina. Walter Scott’s family will receive around $6m for the loss of life and violation of rights. Officer Slager is in prison on bail awaiting trial for murder. This follows on from the multi-million dollar settlement made by the city of New York and the NYPD to the family of Eric Garner who was suffocated in an illegal chokehold by police who claimed he was selling cigarettes.
NUBIART DIARY AFRIKAN HISTORY MONTH
For this year’s Nubiart Diary Afrikan History Month there will be an exhibition, ‘Triumph of the Grassroots: British Social History 1972-2012’ at the Brunei Gallery in London in conjunction with the Brunei Gallery and the Vince Hines Foundation. The exhibition looks at the work and struggles of the Vince Hines Foundation, part of the Self-Help Movement in Britain. Since its founding in 1972 activities they have engaged in include: the promotion of the National Federation of Self-Help Movements, establishing the Afrika and Diaspora institute, running the Connexions youth service in the borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, advice and support, community education, anti-knife and violent crime outreach, the African-Asian Solidarity Conference UK 1992, meals service, outdoor adventures, sports teams, day trips, and musical talent contests. A small selection from their archive will be on display here.
‘Triumph of the Grassroots: British Social History 1972-2012’ runs until Sat 12 Dec on Tues-Sat at 10.30am-5pm (late night Thurs til 8pm) at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh St, London, WC1H 0XG. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7898 4046. Web: www.soas.ac.uk/gallery
Vince Hines Foundation – Tel: 030 3040 2690. Fax: 0870 974 8524. E-mail: cmass@ubol.com
Web: www.ubol.com
FORTHCOMING NUBIART PROFILES
NUBIART: Focus on arts, business, education, health, political developments and the media.
OCT PROMOS
~ ‘AMPLIFICADOR – Various Artists [Far Out Recordings – Out Now] Far Out have stayed true to their label name as it would be easy to fill a Brazilian compilation with any amount of nuevo bossa and rousing sambas and passed it off as the most happening thing in the country. Instead they have gone for the less obvious but not lacking in quality for any of that. This 17-track album opens with the traditional sounds of Ive Seixas with ‘Cervejas Populares’ and a new take on MPB but across the selection there is a heavy bias towards the Afrobeat end of things which was a pleasant surprise. Abayomy, who formed directly out of a love for Fela’s music, pay tribute to ‘Obatala’. Iconili follow that with their ‘O Rei De Tupanga’. Zulumbi’s self-titled track is a good introduction to what they are about with the added Portuguese rap over the groove. Zebrabeat Afro-Amazonia Orquestra’s ‘Zebrabeat’ mixes the Afrobeat polyrhythms with the regional rhythms of Para state.
Andre Sampaio E Os Afromandinga are clearly inspired more by Ali Farka Toure and Afel Bocoum on their blues ‘Ecos de Niafunke’ but they nail that style so well you can easily picture those great men laying this down in Mali themselves. Luziluzia’s ‘Summertime’ and Fino Coletivo’s ‘Iracema’ are more jazzy and contemplative. The Baggios take the psychedelic rock route with guitar and horn section to the fore on ‘Esturia Leao’. While Burro Morto give the drumkit a good pounding on the instrumental ‘Lucifer Colombia’ which show frevo and forro influences.
DJ Dolores (actually a man) drops ‘O Amor Vai’ a swinging club dance track. It comes from the album ‘Banda Sonora musica para filmes’ so it’s part of the soundtracks being used in the vast Brazilian film industry. Os Sertoes’ ‘Flor de Saudade’ is a ska-tinged number while Aeromocas E Tenistas Russas go even further down that road with ‘Kilimanjaro Dub’ which has hints of Stevie Wonder in his ‘Master Blaster’ / ‘Hotter Than July’ phase in between the other ingredients in the melange. Motormama’s ‘Rio Grande’ is the closer to an album that is more varied in musical styles than originally expected but is a reflection of the diversity of talent and influences that make up Brazil and its music scenes
~ ‘ISLAND RECORDS PRESENTS REGGAE DISCOMIXES’ – Various Artists [Spectrum Records – Out Now] Rocksolid 22-track double-CD compilation from the golden age of roots and rub-a-dub reggae. Island Records deliver up some extended workouts from their vaults and the tracklisting speaks for itself. Truly there are no fillers here:
Disc 1
1. Idle Dog - Hosbah Lawrence & Trinity; 2. In The Midnight Hour / Ya Ya - George Faith; 3. Cool Meditation - Third World; 4. Ku Klux Klan - Steel Pulse; 5. Want Fi Goh Rave - Linton Kwesi Johnson; 6. Children of Sanchez – Rico; 7. Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner - Black Uhuru; 8. Old Broom - Wailing Souls; 9. You Mean The World To Me - The Paragons; 10. Proverbs Extraction - Pablo Moses; 11. Pass The Kouchie / Pass The Knowledge - The Mighty Diamonds
Disc 2
1. Dreadlocks In The Moonlight - Lee Perry; 2. Carry Go Bring Come - Justin Hinds & The Dominoes; 3. Memories - Junior Murvin; 4. Prophecy – Fabian; 5. Civilized Reggae - Burning Spear; 6. We ‘A’ Rockers - Inner Circle; 7. Chatty Chatty - Toots & The Maytals; 8. Fight To The Top - Michael Prophet; 9. Warrior Charge – Aswad; 10. Lovers Rocking & Skanking - Tony Tuff; 11. Cool Down The Pace - Gregory Isaacs
The album kicks off with a tribute to all the artists and musicians who hung out down at Idler’s Rest waiting for a shout from a producer or singer to come to work. Jamaican roots classics come from Burning Spear’s ‘Civilized Reggae’, Wailing Souls, The Mighty Diamonds, Black Uhuru, Third World, Justin Hinds & The Dominoes, Junior Murvin, Michael Prophet and Toots & The Maytals. I’d half forgotten that both ‘Proverbs Extraction’ and Fabian’s ‘Prophecy’ were from the Island stable as I linked them to their release on other labels. There is jazzy-reggae from Rico and yard lovers from the eternally Cool Ruler, Tony Tuff, George Faith and The Paragons. The ‘British’ contingent are not ignored with Steel Pulse, LKJ, and even in this company Aswad’s ‘Warrior Charge’ still sounds as immediate and life-affirming as it did on that first hearing – you can never tire of watching Blue voice out over it in ‘Babylon’, still one of the greatest scenes in cinema history.
I remember the first Island 12” that I came across was The Meditations ‘Much Smarter’ Pre-Release which belonged to one of my sisters. For years I hunted round all the record shops trying to get my own copy and I assumed the distributors were just stalling me but it turns out that was one of the records - along with The Congos ‘Heart of the Congos’ - that got caught up in the dispute between Lee Perry and Chris Blackwell when Scratch pulled all his content that wasn’t fully released from the label so the 7” version of ‘Much Smarter’ that he put out was not as dread and heavy as the Island pre. Ten years ago I wouldn’t have been happy if Island had put out a discomix compilation and not included that track but with the repress, re-release and download market there’s an easier way to get access to a lot of tunes than traipsing round dusty shops or paying silly amounts of ‘hard-earned’ cash.
~ ‘SALENTO JAMDOWN’ – Sud Sound System [Adriatic Sound – Out Now] Mixtape CD coming out of Italy of modern roots reggae in the first half and dancehall. There are Jamaican and Italian artists here and most of the songs are likewise a mix of the two languages. Luckily it’s not a juggling mixtape where you only get 30 seconds of a track with some selector talking inanities all over the actual track. There’s some quality artists here including Capleton, Anthony ‘Gunshot’ Johnson, Jah Mason, Morgan Heritage and Luciano. While on the upfront line-up is Kiprich, a very impressive vocal style from Miss Trinity, Daddy Freddy (once considered the fastest DJ in the world), Alozade, Esco, General Levy, Bling Dog, Chico, Voicemail, Doctor Evil and TOK. Standout track is easily Luciano’s heartfelt ‘Lampedusa’:
‘This is Luciano in association with Sud Sound System and the Salento family paying homage to the brave pioneers who set sail in treacherous waters seeking for brighter shores…
Though waters are turbulent
Raging hard with the desperate
Brave souls seeking for betterment
Putting their own lives in detriment
Leaving loved ones behind
Hoping that they would find
Even a slice of paradise
Making the ultimate sacrifice…
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row…
Human souls are constantly
Reaching out for survival
Seeking better perpetually
Preserving life is essential.
Though they don’t know
What the future holds
Yet still they go
Searching for better shores
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row
Row, row, to Lampedusa we go
Go, go, for a better life we row.’
NUBIART LIBRARY – OCT MEDIA
We will only review books we have read and DVDs we have seen and that are available at reasonable prices online or in shops or libraries. However, given the nature and current state of Afrikan publishing and film production there may be books and films on this list that are worth the extra effort to track down.
~ ‘ADRIFT: PEOPLE OF A LESSER GOD’. Dir: Dominique C Mollard [Simply Media] ‘God is great, until we die.’ The director Dominique C. Mollard is also the reporter in this documentary about Afrikans leaving the continent searching for a better life and future. Here it is from the Mauritanian / Senegalese coast to the Canary Islands, which although off Afrika’s west coast technically meant they had landed in Spain. The journey takes five days in small pirogues but it is in hostile seas and because of the trade winds without a good navigator your boat could end up in south America months later with skeletons if it doesn’t sink before then. From 2005-2009 60,000 Afrikans made the journey and at least 5,500 bodies were washed ashore. For many Afrikans this was the main way into Europe until the ‘Arab Spring’ opened up the route from Tunisia and Libya to Lampedusa. Since then the instability in the Middle East has opened up the route to Greece and increased traffic on the notorious Balkan route through Turkey into Eastern Europe.
Mollard spent nearly two years interviewing migrants in Mauritania and Senegal - several of whom have attempted the trip already either turning back or having been deported - before undertaking the crossing with 38 Afrikan migrants, among them a five-month-old baby. Reasons for them wanting to leave included the locals fishing fleet being decimated by larger fish factory ships who scooped up all the catch leaving nothing for the small-scale fishermen; the rising militant Islam outlawing activities in various countries; wanting to connect with relatives; hoping for financial success in a pool of increasing poverty; following the wealth and resources that have been exploited and expropriated from Afrika by corrupt corporations and governments; and continued slavery and discrimination in Mauritania despite laws outlawing such practices.
Spain has various agreements with Afrikan countries about coping with the migrants. An agreement with Mali was that any Malians who reached the Canaries would be deported back to Mali. While people in boats on the high seas expect to be picked up by ships and handed over to the Spanish marine patrol or civil guard but sometimes it doesn’t work out that way, by accident or design, and instead people are handed over to the Moroccan navy. This also means being deported back to their country of origin or to the points of embarkation, ie Mauritania or Senegal, to try again as soon as enough money has been raised or the next favourable crossing time comes along. If political stability, economic development and a fairer share of the resource wealth are not forthcoming then the situation on the continent will continue to reflect what one person said in ‘Adrift’: ‘Africa is dying a slow death, assisted by the rest of the world.’
Nubiart Diary
We welcome feedback on any event you have attended that was listed in Nubiart Diary. It helps us with the selection of future listings and is also info we can pass on to the event organisers where appropriate. ~ BASSEKOU KOUYATÉ: UK LIVE DATES + NEW VIDEO. Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba’s fourth album ‘Ba Power’ is a striking, career defining record marked by mesmerizing songs, razor-sharp riffs and full-throttle emotions. ‘Ba Power’ contains all the swagger, precision and wide-eyed excitement that the title implies. It is the album where Bassekou’s music engages with the world in ways he could have only imagined 10 years before. It is the album where he confirms his status amongst the 21st century’s most relevant musical artists. ‘Musow Fanga’ (meaning ‘Power of Women’) is the second single taken from the album, and with it in hand.
- On Mon 19 Oct at 8pm at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall (Music Room), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Hope Street, Liverpool L1 9BP. Adm: £16. Web: http://www.liverpoolphil.com/17931/events-contemporary-music/bassekou-kouyate.html
- On Tues 20 Oct at 8.30pm at The Lantern, Colston Hall, Colston Street, Bristol, BS1 5AR. Adm: £16.50. Web: http://www.colstonhall.org/shows/bassekou-kouyate-and-ngoni-ba/
- On Thurs 22 Oct at 8pm at Firth Hall, Firth Court, Western Bank, Sheffield University, Sheffield S10 2TN. Tickets: £14 adv. (Conc. £12 / Students £5) / £16 on the door (Conc. £14 / Students £6)
NB: A TalkingGigs where Bassekou will be discussing his music and life with Andy Morgan, interspersed by musical interludes (solo / duet, etc). Web: http://concerts.sheffield.ac.uk/whats-on/global-soundtracks-bassekou-kouyate
- On Fri 23 Oct at 7.45pm at Howard Assembly Room, 46 New Briggate, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6NU. Adm: £17.50 (Conc. £14.50 - £15.75) Web: http://www.operanorth.co.uk/howard-assembly-room / http://www.operanorth.co.uk/productions/bassekou-kouyate-sings-the-blues
Bassekou Kouyaté: http://bassekoukouyate.com/
Twitter: @Bassekou http://twitter.com/Bassekou
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bassekou-Kouyat%C3%A9/39291943354?fref=ts
Glitterbeat Records: http://glitterbeat.com/
Twitter: @Glitterbeat_Rec https://twitter.com/Glitterbeat_Rec
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Glitterbeat
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/glitterbeattv
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/glitterbeat
~ THE NEW BLACK FILM COLLECTIVE AND BLACK HISTORY STUDIES PRESENT ‘CIVILISED CINEMA: THE FIGHT FOR EQUAL RIGHTS ON SCREEN’. The New Black Film Collective’s Black History Month 2015 programme features this inspirational series of films and events commemorating 50 years since the passing of the British Race Relations Act, voting rights in the US, the assassination of Malcolm X and the 25th anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela which led to the abolition of apartheid.
The New Black Film Collective screenings below are all in the Stratford / Bow area of London:
- ‘Looking for Claudia Jones’ (U) & ‘Selma’ (15). On Tues 20 Oct at 6pm & 8pm at Genesis Cinema, London.
- ‘Masterclass: Black Political Narratives - Black Sections: past, present and future’. On Wed 21 Oct at 6-7.30pm at University Square Stratford, London.
- ‘Grove Roots’ (U). On Thurs 22 Oct at 6pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
- ‘The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution’ (12). On Thurs 22 Oct at 8.30pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London
- ‘Looking for Claudia Jones’ (U). On Thurs 29 Oct at 6pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
- ‘Masterclass: The Aliveness of Black Film’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 6.30-7.30pm at University Square Stratford, London.
- ‘Njinga (Nzinga), Queen of Angola. On Thurs 29 Oct at 8.30pm at Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford, London.
Adm: Free. Tel: 020 8470 0692 / 07860 613 246. E-mail: priscilla@tnbfc.co.uk Web: www.tnbfc.co.uk
Black History Studies screenings:
- ‘Divided By Race. United In War And Peace’ (U). On Fri 23 Oct at 7.30pm. A powerful documentary about race relations in Britain during and after the Second World War. At its core are the testimonies of 14 surviving veterans, particularly those West Indian and Afrikan men and women who volunteered to join the war effort and soon afterwards returned to live in Britain. They risked their lives to serve under the Union Jack in time of war, then faced a second battle for the right to remain under that flag as British Citizens. Until now their stories have not been fully heard. Nor has the contribution they made been properly recognised, both in helping to win the war and in changing the face of British society. This film, brought to you by The-Latest.Com, Britain’s first dedicated citizen journalism website, seeks to both redress that balance and explore the sometimes painful evolution of our multi-cultural society. After the screening there will be a Q&A with the Director Marc Wadsworth
- ‘Fast Girls’ (PG). On Friday 30th October 2015 at 7.30pm. When sassy streetwise Shania (Lenora Crichlow) meets ambitious, middle class Lisa (Lily James), their two worlds collide on the athletics track with explosive results. As the fast girls strive to qualify for a major world athletics championship, they battle adversity and rivalry on their dramatic, heart-warming and inspirational journey.
All screenings at the Bernie Grant Arts Centre, Town Hall Approach Road, Tottenham, London, N15 4RX. Adm: Free. Tel / Fax: 020 8881 0660. Mobile: 07951 234 233. E-mail: info@blackhistorystudies.com Web: http://www.blackhistorystudies.com
~ ‘MALCOLM X’ SCREENING. On Tues 20 Oct at 5-7pm at the Idea Store, Chrisp Street, 1 Vesey Path, East India Dock Road, London, E14 6BT. Tel: 020 7364 4332. E-mail: ideastore@towerhamlets.gov.uk Web: www.ideastore.co.uk
~ LIGALI ‘BEAUTY IS…’ SCREENINGS
- On Thurs 22 Oct at 7pm at Leicester African Centre, Maidstone Road, Leicester, LE2 OUA. Tel: 0116 216 6320. E-mail: leicesterbhconsortium@hotmail.com Screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Toyin Agbetu. Organised by the Leicester Black History Consortium.
- On Wed 28 Oct at 5pm at London School of Economics, Alumni Theatre, New Academic Building, 54 Lincoln’s inn Fields, London, WC2A 3LJ. Adm: Free (Booking Required). With the topic of ‘Black Beauty’ back under the media spotlight, the debate that follows the screening with director Toyin Agbetu and contributors promises to be an important one. Organised by Embrace (Ethnic Minorities Broadening Racial Awareness & Cultural Exchange).
~ SHEBA MONTSERRAT PRODUCTIONS PRESENT
- ‘The Word Revolution’. On Thurs 22 Oct at 7-8.30pm. Adm: Free. Using spoken word, comedy, poetry and dance Sheba Montserrat explores how the words and expressions we use reinforce racist and sexist mindsets.
- ‘A Tribute to John Bubbles’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 7-8.30pm. Adm: Free. Blu pays tribute to vaudeville performer, dancer and singer John W Bubbles, known as the father of ‘rhythm tap’.
Both events at Coombes Croft Library, Tottenham High Road, London, N17 8AG. Tel: 020 8489 8771.
~ BLACK CULTURAL ARCHIVES PRESENT
- ‘Black Georgians: The Shock Of The Familiar’ Exhibition. Tues-Sat at 10am-6pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Treasures in the Archives: Black People in Lambeth’s 18th Century Parish’. On Thurs 22 Oct at 1pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Treasures in the Archives: The Life of Ignatius Sancho’. On Thurs 5 Nov at 1pm. Adm: Free.
- ‘Len Garrison Memorial Lecture: Gaps in Black British History’. On Thurs 12 Nov at 4.45-8.30pm at the Institute of Historical Research, Senate House, Malet Street, UCL, London. Adm: £20 / £15 concs. Talks by BBC producer David Olusoga, historian and publisher marika Sherwood and freelance journalist Miranda Kaufmann.
All events (unless otherwise stated) at Black Cultural Archives, Windrush Square, Brixton, London, SW2 1EF. Tel: 020 3757 8500. Web: www.bcaheritage.org.uk
~ ‘UNDERDOGS’. Exhibition of new works by Adjani Ekpe-Ogbu. Including responses to the #BlackLivesMatter and #ICantBreathe campaigns against police killings and brutality towards Afrikans. Until Thurs 22 Oct at Mok Space Gallery, 33 Museum Street, London, WC1A 1LH. Tel: 07931 887 389. Web: adjaniokpuegbe.com
~ BLACK STOCK FILMS PRESENTS ‘LOOKING FOR CLAUDIA JONES’. Dir: Nia Reynolds. Screening followed by Q&A. On Fri 23 Oct at 7pm at Brixton Library, Brixton Oval, London, SW2 1JQ. Adm: £7. Tel: 020 7926 1056.
~ AN INVITATION TO JOIN KADIJA SESAY & FRIENDS
- ‘Black Her-Story’ with Laura Fish, Dorothea Smartt & Kadija Sesay. On Fri 23 Oct at 6.30pm at George Wood Theatre, Goldsmiths University, London, SE4. Web: https://blackher-story.evenbrite.co.uk
- ‘Black Lives Matter: The Past, Present, Future of an International Movement for Rights and Justice (Conference). On Wed 28 Oct at Nottingham Contemporary, Weekday Cross, Nottingham, NG1 2GB. Tel: 0115 948 9750. Web: http://www.octoberdialogues.org/programme.html
~ BLACK HISTORY WALKS
- African Animations Film Festival: ‘Kirikou and the Sorceress’ on Sat 24 Oct at 12pm’; ‘Spirit of the Pharaoh’, ‘Bluefields’ & ‘Tropical Island’ premiere on Sun 25 Oct at 2pm; ‘Kirikou and the Men and Women’ on Mon 26 Oct at 11am; ‘Zarafa’ on Fri 30 Oct at 1pm.
- ‘Njinga’. On Sat 7 Nov at 6.30pm.
All screenings at the Phoenix Cinema, 52 High Road, East Finchley, London, N2. Tel: 020 8444 6789. Web: www.phoenixcinema.co.uk
~ EQUIANO SOCIETY CELEBRATING THE LIFE AND TIMES OF PAUL BOGLE (1820 – 24TH OCTOBER 1865) COMMEMORATING THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS ‘DEATH’. There will be a screening of ‘Catch A Fire’, Menelik Shabazz’s biography of Paul Bogle. On Sat 24 Oct at 3.30-5.30pm at Karibu Educational Centre, 7 Gresham Road, London, SW9 7PH.
~ BRITISHBLACKMUSIC.COM/BLACK MUSIC CONGRESS PRESENTS
- ‘British History 50:70 / Is Jesus White?’ On Sat 24 Oct at 5-8pm at Clapham Common Methodist Church Hall, Nelson’s Row, London, SW4 7JR. Adm: Free. Web: http://bit.ly/Br5070 An audio-visual presentation by history consultant Kwaku on Christian iconography which puts Jesus and Christianity into a historical context that links to the present. It covers religion, art, identity and impact of the usual portrayal of “whiteness” against the seldom portrayal of the “other” or “blackness” within Christian iconography. Funds raised will go towards the Queen Mother Moore School. For campaign details contact Prof Gus John on: gj@gusjohn.com.
- ‘Look How Far We’ve Come Community Talk - Is Jesus White?’ On Wed 28 Oct at 6.30-9pm at Croydon BME Forum, CR0 3PB. An audio-visual presentation on Christian iconography by history consultant Kwaku, which puts Jesus and Christianity into a historical context that links to the present. It covers religion, art, identity and impact of the usual portrayal of “whiteness” against the seldom portrayal of the “other” or “blackness” within Christian iconography.
- ‘Look How Far We Have Come’ Film Screening and Discussion. On Thurs 29 Oct at 5pm at Tate South Lambeth Library, London, SW8 1QP. Tel: 020 7926 0705. History consultant Kwaku examines the question of racial equality in Britain for young people 14+ (& parents/family).
- The Black Music Research Unit (BMRU) Annual Seminar. On 31 Oct at the University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5LS.
- Taking From Eric Williams’ ‘Capitalism & Slavery’. On Mon 2 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Harrow Mencap, 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com / http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL Presentation and discussion led by Cecil Gutzmore.
- ‘Creators’ Rights In The Digital Landscape’. On Tues 10 Nov at 6.30-9pm at Fyvie Hall, UoW, 309 Regent St. London, W1B 2UW. Adm: MT members - £20 / Standard - £30 / Students - £15. With Fiona McGugan FAC & MMF; Horace Trubridge, Assistant General Secretary, MU; Benoît Machuel, General Secretary, FIM; and Alexander Ross, Partner, Wiggin LLP. Chaired by MusicTank chair, Keith Harris.
- ‘Africans In Classical Music’. On Mon 16 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Harrow Mencap 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. Adm: Free. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL
Led by Kwaku.
- ‘History Of African Media In Britain’. On Mon 30 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm @ Harrow Mencap 1st floor, 3 Jardine House, Harrovian Business Village, Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX. Adm: Free. E-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com With history consultant Kwaku and media consultant Neil Kenlock http://bit.ly/1dD4QyL
For BBM/BMC events e-mail: editor@BritishBlackMusic.com Web: www.BritishBlackMusic.com
~ MARIAN GOODMAN GALLERY PRESENTS WILLIAM KENTRIDGE’S ‘MORE SWEETLY PLAY THE DANCE’ includes two immersive multiscreen film installations, monumental ink-on-paper paintings, sculptures and drawings. The upper gallery is dedicated to the show title, More Sweetly Play the Dance’, an eight-screen processionary danse macabre. But, beyond the medieval notion of dancing as a means of staving off death, as this 40 metre, life-sized, circular caravan traverses around us, one senses that it’s as much a cortege of those who have been deprived of a fully realised life – yet another procession of refugees fleeing a skirmish or warlord. Most of the itinerants are filmed holding up silhouettes transcribed from enlarged Kentridge drawings as they march. Kentridge’s long-time collaborator Dada Masilo brings up the rear, dancing en pointe with a rifle to the last strains of their canticle, as if single-handedly “hold[ing] the hope and disillusion together”.
Downstairs, Kentridge presents ‘Notes Towards a Model Opera’, a three-screen film installation that grew from his research for a recent exhibition at the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing. He found himself repeatedly drawn to Madame Mao’s Eight Model Revolutionary Operas, which conflated vainglorious folklore, jingoistic re-presentations of military victories, martial arts and ballet. The soundtrack for the piece, arranged by the composer Philip Miller, is based on various elaborations of the communist anthem ‘The Internationale’ ranging in style from period 1950s colonial dance bands to South African toyi-toyi chanting protest marches. Until 24 Oct on Tues-Sat at 10am-6pm at Marian Goodman Gallery, 5-8 Lower John Street, London, Tel: Charlie Dunnery McCracken on 020 7099 0088. E-mail: charlie@mariangoodman.com
~ ISLINGTON BHM SCREENING OF ‘THE SUPREME PRICE’ + DIRECTOR Q&A. Dir: Joanna Lipper. In 1993 Nigeria elected M.K.O. Abiola as president in a historic democratic vote that promised to end years of military dictatorship. Shortly after the election, Abiola’s victory was annulled. General Sani Abacha seized power in a military coup and arrested M.K.O Abiola. During her husband’s incarceration, M.K.O Abiola’s wife, Kudirat, took over the leadership of the pro-democracy movement, organising strikes and marches and winning international attention for the Nigerian struggle. Because of this work, she too became a target and was assassinated. Director Joanna Lipper explores past and present as she tells this deeply moving and intriguing story through the eyes of the Abiola’s eldest daughter, Hafsat Abiola, who was about to graduate from Harvard when her mother was murdered. Her father died in prison two years later under mysterious circumstances. Determined not to let her parents’ democratic ideals die with them, Hafsat returns to Nigeria after years in exile and is at the forefront of a progressive movement to empower women and dismantle the patriarchal structure of Nigerian society. Screening will be followed by a Q&A with the Producer/Director Joanna Lipper and Lela Kogbara, Assistant Chief Executive (Islington Council). On Mon 26 Oct at 7.30pm at King’s Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG. Adm: £9.50.
~ CONTEMPORARY ARTS RESEARCH PRESENT ‘MIS-CONNECTIONS IN CONTEMPORARY ART WORLDS’. Seminar led by Hassan Musa. On Tues 27 Oct at 7-9pm at Room B111, Brunei Building, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, London, WC1H 0XG.
~ THE GREAT PHYSICIAN INTERNATIONAL PRESENTS ‘THE ANCIENT WAYS’ SEMINARS
- With Hon Prophet Newton on ‘The Coconut Workshop: Oil and Pastries’; Dr Majeena Lynch on ‘The Immune System – Demystified’; Hon Priest Isaac on ‘The Healing Power of The Mind – Ye are all Gods’; and Rt Hon Priest Kailash Leonce on ‘Zero Tolerance to Dis-ease’. On Thurs 29 Oct at 6.30pm at Chestnuts Community Centre, St Ann’s Road, London, N15 5BN. Adm: £10 (adv) ‘ £15 (OTD).
- With Hon Prophet Newton on ‘The Coconut Workshop: Coconut as a Food’; Dr Majeena Lynch on ‘When is Inflammation NOT Beneficial’; Hon Priest Isaac on ‘The Metaphysics of Rastafari’; and Rt Hon Priest Kailash Leonce on ‘Natural Cures We Need to Know’. On Sun 1 Nov at 4pm at Karibu Education Centre, 7 Gresham Rd, London, SW9 7PH. Adm: £10 (adv) / £15 (OTD).
For tickets to both events tel: 07984 995 347 / 07580 378 237. E-mail: priestkailash@gmail.com
/ foodof7@hotmail.com Web: www.priestkailash.com
~ ‘UNTOLD MEMORIES’. Exhibition of paintings by Mozambican artist Nataniel Moiane depicting dialogues between continents and cultures. Until 30 Oct at Mon-Fri at 9am-6pm and Sat 10.30am-5pm at Brady Arts Centre, 192-196 Hanbury Street, London, E1 5HU. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7364 7900. E-mail: nataniel.moiane@gmx.com Web: www.natanielmoiane.com
~ ADINKRA ARTS COLLECTIVE PRESENT ‘HELP ME AND LET ME HELP YOU’. Film screenings, spoken word, self-employment workshops and an Afrikan market. On Fri 30 Oct at 6-9pm and Sat 31 Oct at 12-8pm at Bell Gardens Community Centre, 19 Buller Close, London, SE15 6UJ. Tel: 07827 537 519. E-mail: orvilkunga@gmail.com Web: www.facebook.com/adinkraartscollective.org
~ CLASSIQUES BLACK HISTORY MONTH PARTY SPECIAL. Your premier party experience bringing you the very best in 70’s, 80’s & 90’s classics. DJs: Natural Mystic, Bobo El Numero Uno and Vibemaster. All proceeds go towards the Alkebu-Lan Academy of Excellence! (Saturday School) and MAAT Academy of Excellence! (Home Schooling Collective). On Fri 30 Oct at 10pm at Large Lounge, 119 Harrow Road, Leytonstone, London, E11 3PX. Adm: £10 (adv). Tickets: Mama Afrika Kulcha Shap, 282 High Road Leyton, London, E10 5PW. Tel: 020 8539 2154 / 07939 292 720 / 07889 281 809. Web: https://shoobs.com/events/9165/classiques-70-s-80-s-90-s-at-its-finest
~ RAS PRESENTS ‘FILM AFRICA’. London’s premier Afrikan film event will showcase the best new features, documentaries and short films from across the continent and diaspora. For its fifth anniversary, Film Africa will present 60 films from 26 different Afrikan countries, including several London, UK, European and World Premieres. 15 visiting filmmakers will present their films in London representing Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Ethiopia, South Africa, Angola, Algeria and the Diaspora. Opening this year’s festival is ‘Run’, the debut feature from Ivorian director Philippe Lacôte. Fresh from its Cannes Un Certain Regard screening and Jury Prize win at FESPACO, Run is an extraordinarily cinematic and poetic work on Ivory Coast’s historical conflicts. For the closing, Film Africa hosts the UK premiere of Lyes Salem’s ‘The Man From Oran’, an epic expose of Algeria’s turbulent political history following independence from France in 1962. There will be a special focus on Afrikan countries that were former portuguese colonies, ‘Lusophone Liberty: 40 Years On’, three exciting new features from Ethiopia and ‘Sembéne Focus: Double Bill’ at the British Library, as part of their West Africa: Cultures of the Word exhibition. Screenings run across London between Fri 30 Oct – Sun 8 Nov. For programme go to www.filmafrica.org.uk
~ UNITED FRIENDS AND FAMILY CAMPAIGN ANNUAL MARCH AND RALLY AGAINST DEATHS IN CUSTODY AND POLICE & STATE BRUTALITY. On Sat 31 Oct at 12pm from Trafalgar Square to Downing Street, London, WC1.
~ TIWANI CONTEMPORARY PRESENTS ‘THE MIRROR BALL CONSTELLATION’ EXHIBITION Since the early 1980s, Theo Eshetu has combined the formal components of film with anthropological ideas to examine the notion of culture itself. His manipulation of time and light leads to work that draws on themes and images from the artist’s dual European and African background. As one of the first artists to work exclusively with video art, Eshetu has contributed significantly to the medium’s recognition within the context of fine art. Eshetu’s long form essay-films and multiscreen video installations have gained him international recognition at numerous film festivals and museums. Tiwani Contemporary will show Eshetu’s acclaimed 2014 work Anima Mundi, an immersive multimedia and video installation, as well as the five-screen video installation Meditation Light (2006) and works from the photographic series The Mirror Ball Constellation (2013-2015). Theo Eshetu was born in 1958 in London and grew up in Addis Ababa, Dakar and London before establishing himself in Rome. He currently lives and works in Berlin. Exhibition continues until 31 Oct on Tues-Fri at 11am-6pm and Sat at 12-5pm at Tiwani Contemporary, 16 Little Portland Street, London. E-mail: info@tiwani.co.uk Web: www.tiwani.co.uk
~ RAS PRESENTS ‘KING OF KINGS - THE TRIUMPH & TRAGEDY OF EMPEROR HAILE SELASSIE I OF ETHIOPIA’. Haile Selassie I was a descendent of King Solomon and a forerunner of African unity and independence. He fought with the Allies against the fascist Axis powers during the Second World War and was a reformer and an autocrat, who was assassinated in a communist coup. Haile Selassie is brilliantly portrayed in King of Kings by his great-nephew Asfa-Wossen Asserate. On Mon 2 Nov at 6.30-8.30pm at Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS, Russell Square, London, WC1H 0XG. Adm: Free.
~ TATE BRITAIN SPOTLIGHT ON SANKOFA FILM & VIDEO - ‘MARTINA ATTILLE: DREAMING RIVERS’. The Autumn season of screenings at Tate Britain continues its spotlight on the visionary collective Sankofa Film and Video. It was established in 1983 by five aspiring filmmakers – Martina Attille, Maureen Blackwood, Robert Crusz, Isaac Julien and Nadine Marsh-Edwards, focused on the production of new black subjectivities and introducing audiences to black feminist theory and the politics and poetics of self-representation. This 30 minute short, shot in 16mm, in director Attille’s own words ‘illustrates the spirit of modern families touched by the experience of migration.’ Winner of Film Ducat at 1988 Mannheim Festival and other awards, this rarely seen work evocatively weaves together fragments of a solitary present, ambition-fuelled dreams and memories of the past. Caribbean-born Miss T.’s wake serves as the site for lyrical recollections from both those who live on and from Miss T. herself. The screening will be followed by artist Sonia Boyce MBE, Professor in Fine Art at Middlesex University (and set designer on Dreaming Rivers) in conversation with and Dr Amna Malik, Senior Lecturer in Art History and Theory at Slade School of Fine Art. On Mon 2 Nov at 7-8.30pm at Clore Auditorium, Tate Britain, Millbank, London, SW1. Adm: £5 / concs available.
~ LONDON SOCIALIST FILM CO-OP PRESENT ‘FAIR TRADE MATTERS’ AND ‘SHADOWS OF LIBERTY’. The first film looks at the working life of Edson, a tea farmer in Malawi. The second film analyses control and ownership of the media and news agenda. On Sun 8 Nov at 11am at Bolivar Hall, The Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, 54 Grafton Way, London, W1T 5DL. Adm: £10 / £8 – concs. Tel: 020 7278 5764. E-mail: nseyd@hotmail.com Web: www.socialistfilm.blogspot.com
~ ONE HAND CAN’T CLAP PRESENT ‘COMMON TIES’. Entrepreneur and coach Lorlett Hudson presents an evening guest speakers, cultural wisdom, spoken word and music. On Thurs 19 Nov at 6-9pm at Clapham Library, Mary Seacole Centre, 91 Clapham High Street, London, SW4 7DB. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7926 0717.
‘West Africa - Mission from cape’
~ ‘WEST AFRICA: WORD, SYMBOL, SONG’. An exhibition of literature and music – from the great African empires of the Middle Ages to the cultural dynamism of West Africa today using beautiful manuscripts, sound, film and more, tracing the written and oral cultural history of West Africa for the past three centuries. Fascinating stories from the region’s 17 nations show how West Africans have harnessed the power of words to build societies, drive political movements, sustain religious belief and fight injustice. Hear the myth of the founding of ancient Mali in recorded performance. See the influence of religion through colourful fabric and the saddlebag Qur’an. Celebrate writers and artists including Africa’s first Nobel prize winner, Wole Soyinka, and internationally acclaimed musician and human rights activist Fela Kuti. At the PACCAR Gallery, British Library, 96 Euston Road, London, NW1 2DB. Adm: £10 / Under-18s – Free / Concs available. Tel: +44 (0)1937 546 546. E-mail: boxoffice@bl.uk Web: http://www.bl.uk/events/west-africa-word-symbol-song
Syd Shelton, Bagga, vocalist with
Matumbi, Hackney, London, 1978
~ AUTOGRAPH ABP PRESENT ‘SYD SHELTON: ROCK AGAINST RACISM’. The first major exhibition of Syd Shelton’s photographs capturing one of the most intriguing and contradictory political periods in British post war history. Between 1976 and 1981, the Rock Against Racism (RAR) confronted racist ideology in the streets, parks and town halls of Britain. RAR was formed by a collective of musicians and political activists to fight fascism and racism through music. Under the slogan ‘Love Music, Hate Racism’, it showcased reggae and punk bands on the same stage, attracting large multi-cultural audiences. At a time when the fascist attitudes of the National Front were gaining support, RAR marked the rising resistance to violent and institutionalised racism. Shelton photographed performers such as The Clash, Elvis Costello, Misty in Roots, Tom Robinson, Au Pairs and The Specials as well as the audiences at RAR gigs and carnivals across England. He captured the history-making RAR Carnival at Victoria Park, London in 1978, and demonstrations such as the Anti National Front Demonstration in Lewisham in 1977. Shelton also took contextual social and cultural images that informed the politics of the movement across England and Ireland. Until 5 Dec on Tues, Wed & Fri at 11am–6pm, Thurs at 11am–9pm and Sat at 12–6pm at Autograph, Rivington Place, London, EC2A 3BA. Adm: Free. Tel: +44 (0)20 7729 9200. Fax +44 (0)20 7739 8748. E-mail: info@rivingtonplace.org
Hula dancers from the Hālau Nā
Kipuʻupuʻu group, Kaʻauea, Hawaiʻi,
Hawaiian Islands, 2011.
Photography: Dino Morrow.
~ BRITISH MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS AND EVENTS ‘SHIFTING PATTERNS: PACIFIC BARKCLOTH CLOTHING’. A selection of textiles from the Pacific used to wrap, drape and adorn the body in a myriad of styles and designs, these garments demonstrate the long history of barkcloth, and its ongoing relevance today. In the islands of the Pacific, cloth made from the inner bark of trees is a distinctive art tradition its designs reflect the histories of each island group and the creativity of the makers. Spanning the region from New Guinea in the west to Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in the east, the exhibition will show a selection of 77 garments, headdresses, masks and body adornments from the Museum’s collection dating from the 1700s to 2014, including those worn as everyday items and ceremonial costumes linked to key life cycle events such as initiation and marriage. Barkcloth is generally made and decorated by women, but garments intended for ritual purposes may be made by men. Until Sun 6 Dec at Room 91 at the British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC2. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7323 8181.
~ ‘AFRICAN THREADS, HACKNEY STYLE: 400 YEARS OF TEXTILES JOURNEYS FROM AFRICA TO HACKNEY’. This exhibition explores Hackney’s historic ties with Africa through fabric and fashion. Uncover their influence on the local area, from 17th century trade with West Afrika by Hackney merchants to the presence of Afrikan communities and textiles in Hackney today. Discover how textiles were produced in different regions of Afrika and the meaning behind some of their bold designs. The exhibition features stunning costumes, photographs and local people. At Hackney Museum, Technology And Learning Centre, 1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ.
~ ‘NO COLOUR BAR: BLACK BRITISH ART IN ACTION 1960-1990’. Exhibition of the archive of the Guyanese campaigners and publishers Eric and Jessica Huntley. Until Sun 24 Jan 2016 at Mon-Sat at 10am-5pm and Sun 12-4pm at Guildhall Art Gallery, Guildhall Yard, London, EC2V 5AE. Adm: Free. Tel: 020 7332 3700. Twitter: @NoColourBar Web: www.nocolourbar.london
~ JENGBA MEETINGS. JENGbA campaigners can deliver lectures to Law, Criminology, Media, Sociology, Youth Studies departments as well as school children. On the second Tues of every month at 7pm at Edward Woods Community Centre, London, W11 4TX. Tel: 07709 115793 / 07725 727520 (Media Enquiries). New office: Office A, Norland House, Queensdale Cresent, London, W11 4TL. E-mail: JointEnterpriseInfo@Gmail.com / JengbaMedia@Gmail.com
~ BUNDU DIA KONGO (BDK). African cultural and spiritual group, working towards the spiritual and psychological growth and development of Africans all over the world. Let us make a positive change now. Our story pre-dates Egypt and continues today. Come and learn about African prophets, African history and African spiritual practices at our weekly Zikua.
- Sun at 1.30–4.30pm at 108 Battersea High Street, London, SW11 3HPTel: Makaba - 07951 059 853. E-mail: moyomakaba9@gmail.com
- Sun at 12.30–3.15pm at Malika House, 81 George Street, Lozells, Birmingham, B19 1Sl. Tel: Mbuta Mayala – 07404 789 329.
~ THE AUSAR AUSET SOCIETY GI GONG CLASSES. Every Monday at 7.30–9pm at Hazel Road Community Centre, Hazel Road, Kensal Green, London, NW10 5PP. Adm: £5 per class. Tel: 07951- 252-427. E-mail: Tauinetwork.europe@gmail.com
Contact: Kubara Zamani, Afrikan Quest International, PO Box 35165, London, SE5 8WU. Tel: 07811 494 969. E-mail: afrikanquest1@hotmail.com
Afrikan Quest International
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