We are more than just music: A collective of the African Diaspora Celebrating African Culture

BY DAVID MYLES

‘’Representation matters, but not any kind of representation, positive representation’’ ~ Organiser of Proud African Heritage Festival

A people’s self-concept is paramount. In 1947, Psychologists Dr Mamie Clark and Dr Kenneth Clark carried out what is now known as ‘The Black Doll Experiment’ (based on Mamie Clark’s Master’s Thesis at Howard University) and found that black children as young as five favoured white dolls to black dolls.

The responses from the black children as to why they preferred the white dolls were startling. After Dr Clark and Dr Clark asked a series of questions such as “Which doll is the pretty doll?” As well as “Which doll would you play with?” They concluded their preference for white dolls was a reflection of their own self-hatred.  Succeeding this, many other studies followed such as Mary Ellen Goodman’s 1952 study of ‘Race awareness in young children’ and J Kenneth Morland’s ‘Racial recognition by Nursery School Children in Lynchburg, Virginia.’

Though, the original study that Dr Clark and Dr Clark conducted was to analyse racial stigmatisation in segregated American states, many recently replicated studies have looked at race in the absence of segregation and have found similar ramifications and opposition from black children towards black dolls in ways remicencent to earlier studies in the 1940’s and 1950’s.

A 2010 revised study by Margaret Beale Spencer suggests black pupils’ self-concept has improved since the 40’s era, but white children’s perception of black people remains heavily ensconced in stereotypes. While much of these studies are U.S centric, the calling for greater representation in the UK has been laboriously campaigned. This has been mobilised on many different fronts and is often done with one’s own autonomy and agency, with little or no assistance from the local authorities.

One such example can be seen in the forthcoming Proud African Heritage Festival. One of the organisers of the event, Deborah Ikiebe stated, “The idea of the festival was conceived after my nephew asked last Black History Month (takes place in October in the UK), why are you not doing an event during Black History Month? He then alerted me that the council, or the government is trying to change Black History Month to Diversity month.’’

Ikiebe, asked her nephew and other young people why diversity month was not appealing to them. ‘’That’s not for us; that does not represent us,’’ was their response. ‘’This really resonated with me, that these children need something and they are asking for those of us that can to not let this happen, or override their need for representation.’’

Ikiebe, who is also the Operations Manager of Manna Saturday School (established 1989), and who as a child attended the school herself said, ‘’We sought to put on this event to encourage young Africans in the diaspora to be proud of their heritage, and to also learn more about their heritage. A lot of people in the diaspora, (be they African or not) may know about the music, but they might not know about the culture, or anything about Africa period.’’

Showcasing the multiplicity of African culture the Festival aims to ‘‘Introduce African people, African culture, African businesses, African everything in a family oriented kind of vibe.’’ On the day of the event, children from Manna Saturday School will be performing: poetry, African fashion, dance and spoken word.

‘’We want to come together and support them in being proud of who they are.’’ There will also be: storytelling, a hair show, handmade jewellery, various artefacts on sale and sessions about investing in Africa.

Ikiebe who describes herself as a ‘’Nigerian child of the African diaspora born to parents of Edo and Yoruba tribes,’’ said ‘’Irrespective of age, there will be something for everyone, young people, professionals, seniors and elders too. I am also proud to say that the festival is at a prime location in SE1, which happens to be an African owned venue. A portion of ticket, raffle sales and donations will go towards the Crown Hope International Academies in Weija, Ghana and Lagos, Nigeria.’’

The Proud African Festival will take place on Saturday October 12^th, 2019 at Bethel House, Lansdowne Place, London, SE1 4XH.Sponsorship opportunities are available, and there are only a few vendor stalls left. To purchase tickets visit: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/proud-african-heritage-fest-tickets-67805934375?fbclid=IwAR2bvGrz8W_7nD9zTw6X0D4Vl0r01PmCpR1ChzYMizEBjAZrYYIrDgGHqIQ. Ikiebe is encouraging everyone to ‘’Join this call to action and find us on Facebook and Instagram @ProudAfricanHeritage. Share this event with your networks, friends or family.’’