New book about Black Europe features London
by bbrit project
London-born Black Brit journalist Olive Vassell has co-edited and written a chapter on her birthplace for a pioneering book about Europe’s Black communities. Mapping Black Europe: Monuments, Markers, Memories is the first account by Black Europeans who have collectively marked sites of public memory, from monuments and statues to street names and city plaques, in the European capitals they call home.
The capital city is one of eight highlighted in the book, others are Berlin, Brussels, Luxembourg City, Oslo, Paris, Rome and Warsaw. The work highlights the experiences of each city’s Black communities, offering answers to questions, such as: What is the state of Black memory? Which Black philosophical movements have helped to rewrite distorted histories? How is community activism involved?
In London, monuments like the African Caribbean War Memorial and the Mary Seacole statue are spotlighted, revealing extensive histories about how they came to be created and who was involved. The impact of the Black Lives Matter movement is a starting point for all the book’s chapters, including London.
In tracing the long history of Black communities who challenge racism and create their own memorials to mark Black presence and contribution, this publication allows for comparison and for a collective narrative to be formed across the continent, creating a ‘Blackprint of Europe’.
In addition to Vassell, other contributors include co-editor Natasha A. Kelly, as well as Sibo Rugwiza Kanobana (Brussels), Bernardino Tavares, Aleida Vieira (Luxembourg, Epée Hervé Dingong (Paris,) Michelle A. Tisdel (Oslo)l, Kwanza Musi Dos Santos (Rome), and James Omolo (Warsaw).
About the editors
Olive Vassell is a journalist and professor who founded and headed the pioneering Black European news site, Euromight.com (2009-2022). Olive launched BBrit Project in 2022 and was joined by sociologist and writer Lisette Felix in 2023. BBrit Project is a content platform that aims to amplify the people, places, events, histories and ideas that embody the Black British experience.
Natasha A. Kelly, PhD, is a bestselling author and editor of eight books, Natasha acts as curator, artist, filmmaker, theater director and professor. Her film “Millis Awakening” debuted at the 10th Berlin Biennale in 2018. Natasha presently is the founding director of Germany’s first Institute for Black German Arts and Culture.
Mapping Black Europe: Monuments, Markers, Memories
Natasha A. Kelly & Olive Vassell (editors)
Published by Transcript Verlag on March 2023
Hardback £25.73/ €29.00
Free downloadable PDF available: here
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New book about Black Europe features London
London-born Black Brit journalist Olive Vassell has co-edited and written a chapter on her birthplace for a pioneering book about Europe’s Black communities. Mapping Black Europe: Monuments, Markers, Memories is the first account by Black Europeans who have collectively marked sites of public memory, from monuments and statues to street names and city plaques, in the European capitals they call home.
The capital city is one of eight highlighted in the book, others are Berlin, Brussels, Luxembourg City, Oslo, Paris, Rome and Warsaw. The work highlights the experiences of each city’s Black communities, offering answers to questions, such as: What is the state of Black memory? Which Black philosophical movements have helped to rewrite distorted histories? How is community activism involved?
In London, monuments like the African Caribbean War Memorial and the Mary Seacole statue are spotlighted, revealing extensive histories about how they came to be created and who was involved. The impact of the Black Lives Matter movement is a starting point for all the book’s chapters, including London.
In tracing the long history of Black communities who challenge racism and create their own memorials to mark Black presence and contribution, this publication allows for comparison and for a collective narrative to be formed across the continent, creating a ‘Blackprint of Europe’.
In addition to Vassell, other contributors include co-editor Natasha A. Kelly, as well as Sibo Rugwiza Kanobana (Brussels), Bernardino Tavares, Aleida Vieira (Luxembourg, Epée Hervé Dingong (Paris,) Michelle A. Tisdel (Oslo)l, Kwanza Musi Dos Santos (Rome), and James Omolo (Warsaw).
About the editors
Olive Vassell is a journalist and professor who founded and headed the pioneering Black European news site, Euromight.com (2009-2022). Olive launched BBrit Project in 2022 and was joined by sociologist and writer Lisette Felix in 2023. BBrit Project is a content platform that aims to amplify the people, places, events, histories and ideas that embody the Black British experience.
Natasha A. Kelly, PhD, is a bestselling author and editor of eight books, Natasha acts as curator, artist, filmmaker, theater director and professor. Her film “Millis Awakening” debuted at the 10th Berlin Biennale in 2018. Natasha presently is the founding director of Germany’s first Institute for Black German Arts and Culture.
Mapping Black Europe: Monuments, Markers, Memories
Natasha A. Kelly & Olive Vassell (editors)
Published by Transcript Verlag on March 2023
Hardback £25.73/ €29.00
Free downloadable PDF available: here
RECENT POSTS