HANNAH CUSWORTH ON BLACK BRITISH HISTORY TODAY
“Knowing history is important, but so is taking action in the present’’
Hannah Cusworth is a historian who specialises in black British histories. Formerly a schoolteacher, she is currently completing a PhD with English Heritage looking at mahogany, race and the 18th-century Atlantic world
Black British history spans thousands of years, several continents and innumerable stories. As the historian David Olusoga states in his landmark book, Black and British, ‘‘The black history of Britain is by its nature a global history. Yet too often it is seen as being only the history of migration, settlement and community formation in Britain itself.”
However, this history of migration and settlement, sometimes described as the black presence in Britain, is a vital part of black British history. To date, proving that black people lived, struggled and contributed to Britain has been the primary focus of historians’ work.
Thankfully, it is now much rarer than it once was to hear the refrain that there weren’t any black people in Britain before the arrival of the Windrush in 1948. It is due to the tireless work of scholars such as Onyeka Nubia, Gretchen Gerzina, Hakim Adi, Marika Sherwood, Miranda Kaufmann and David Olusoga that this myth is dying. Their archival digging, and powerful writing, means we now hear the histories of black Tudor trumpeters, Georgian aristocrats and World War I soldiers. The evidence is irrefutable, even if it is still challenged by a minority who refused to recognise it.
As well as a wider range of stories (some reaching back to the Roman era), as Olusoga argues, historians are increasingly recognising that black British history exists outside of Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales. As Britain was an empire, many black British subjects lived beyond these shores, and so black British history is also the history of parts of the Caribbean and Africa. Increasingly, scholars are also exploring the nuances between the four nations, rather than the focus being primarily on England.
The more I study the topic, the more I realise that British history is black history. It is impossible to tell a full account of our nation’s past without acknowledging the role played by black people. Slavery, the wealth generated from it and its legacies continue to shape British life. Things that are central to our national psyche, from the Industrial Revolution to the NHS and the Commonwealth, are intricately linked to a global black British history. The way black communities have organised against injustice makes us re-examine what Britain is and was.
The theme of Black History Month 2022 is ‘Time for Change: Action Not Words’. Knowing our history is incredibly important, but so is taking action in the present and building for a better future. If you enjoyed reading this Essential Guide, share it with someone. Many of us didn’t learn about black British history in school, but I hope this collection of articles has given you a sense of how important knowing this history is to understanding Britain’s past and present.