From a focus on the 2024 theme of ‘reclaiming narratives’ in a talk from the Abbey pulpit to a celebration of Black scientists, a concert featuring the music of Black artists, and a celebration of Shakespeare with a focus on race, October has been a busy month of Black History Month events.

At Abbey, pupils heard two first-hand accounts of experiences of being Black, first from Temi Aladejuyigbe (OW2024) and then from Chika (Remove, DD). Temi discussed the years of hurt, pain and hatred caused by casual racism, and how both friendship and finding the courage to speak had helped her and her sister through. She told – and urged – current pupils: “Hurtful speech and behaviour rooted in bias against any group or identity is unacceptable; just wrong. And remember, even if you aren’t the one doing it, doing nothing is doing something. As a Westminster, you can’t be a bystander. Being a Westminster is about being there for someone who needs kindness and solidarity.”

On reclaiming narratives, Chika said: “Narrative is a powerful vehicle for communicating our experiences, our emotions, and how we see one another. Depending on the narrative, it can either open up or crush opportunities, and it has the power to seriously shape the way we see this world.” Focusing on his love of rap music, he finished: “Whether it’s expressed through modern rap, Afrobeats, traditional songs, or any other medium, a fair narrative is the only way we can truly begin to live and understand who we really are.”

Also across Black History Month:

• A special Huxley Society meeting discussed the lives and works of noted Black ‘trailblazer’ scientists, including J Ernest Wilkins and Patricia Bath
• A BHM Concert featured the works of nine Black musicians and composers, from Samuel Coleridge-Taylor to Alicia Keys, via Errol Garner and Nina Simone
• In Abbey, the chamber choir sang a joyous rendition of the Masithi Amen, a traditional South African song of praise
• Upper Shell pupils Amar and David gave an assembly on the significance of BHM at Westminster Under School
• A meeting of the Cake Society discussed the cultural significance of yellow cake in Black households
• A pop-up stall in Yard served up a special lunch menu of salt fish fritters, jollof rice, plantain and a rum punch mocktail
• A film night had a screening of Oscar nominated movie Hidden Figures
• Mimi (Remove, PP) led a Literary Society discussion on postcolonial studies of literature
• The African Caribbean Society presented David Olusoga’s Documentary, Black and British: A Forgotten History

To round off the month, the Fifth Form Elizabethan Festival had a special focus on Shakespeare and Race. There was a trip to the Globe to watch a staging of The Comedy of Errors, with a hugely diverse cast.

During a talk on racial literacy, Deputy Head Soumia Arif challenged pupils to think in depth about words that are used to describe people and what is acceptable and what’s not, and how the use of language changes over time. She linked back to racist language and stereotypes in Shakespeare and urged pupils to think about their own identity to help them to understand the effect of certain words on others.

The festival ended with performances of scenes from various Shakespeare plays, including from Othello, a play known for its depiction of prejudice and discrimination.