7 Little Things You Should Do This Week To Educate Yourself

What to read, play, and watch this Black History Month.

1. Read The Good Immigrant.

Nikesh Shukla / Via Amazon

This is probably going to be one of the most important books you are ever going to read. The Good Immigrant is a collection of essays about the British immigrant experience, all of them fascinating, informative, and funny.

2. Check out the Remembering Maya talk.

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Go on a journey of words, poetry, and imagery in celebration of Dr Maya Angelou. If you are in the Liverpool area, this talk is definitely worth a visit.

3. Appreciate art created by black women.

“Haitian Beauty” by Mikela Henry-Lowe / Via Matthew Tucker / BuzzFeed

The Black Blossoms exhibition, created by Bee Tajudeen, is a platform where black art can be seen and celebrated.

If you want to know more about Black Blossoms, check out this article.

4. Visit the #ImIrish exhibition.

londonirishcentre.org / Via londonirishcentre.org

If you are in the London area in the month of October, then you should really head over to the London Irish Centre for this free exhibition. The project explores the stories and experiences of mixed-race Irish people.

5. Head over to the Afro Supa Hero exhibition.

jon-daniel.com / Via jon-daniel.com

Running until 11 December, this free exhibition at Liverpool's International Slavery Museum shows a collection of comics, games, action figures, and memorabilia featuring positive black role models of history and fiction.

6. Watch Jemima + Johnny.

Lionel Ngakane / Via bfi.org.uk

This short film is set in London, and shows the relationship between 5-year-old Johnny, the white son of a right-wing nationalist father, and Jemima, the daughter of a recent West Indian immigrant family. It's a beautiful, almost dialogue-free film that is worth a watch.

Jemima + Johnny is available to view in BFI Mediatheques around the UK.

7. Read about black history firsts.

Robert Jukes / Via youtube.com

If you fancy some real education this week, check out this amazing article. It tells the stories of black British firsts, including the story of Andrew Watson, the first black British international footballer.