Library Services Blog

Black History Month 2022. Time for Change: Action Not Words

Black History Month 2022
Black History Month runs every October in the UK. It is a celebration of the history, achievements and contributions of people of African and Caribbean heritage. The theme for this year is Time for Change: Action Not Words. This was chosen to encourage the uniting of communities to make a change for the better. As emphasized by the Black History Month website: actions are needed for support, not just words.

Our Black History Month Reading List
In partnership with the Library and Sheffield Hallam Students’ Union, a new reading list has been curated. We have a range of books, articles, audio-visual content, and webpages that celebrate and explore themes related to Black History Month. All the resources listed are in the Hallam Library collections and are available to borrow for free by Sheffield Hallam University students and staff.

The list has been divided into different themes that will help you to explore narratives, social history, academic texts and fiction aimed at all age ranges.

Explore our reading list here.

Key Titles

• History of Black History Month- Historian Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950), widely regarded as the “Father of Black History”, established the first Black History Week to promote the teaching of Black history in schools. This led to the eventual creation of Black History Month in 1976. To find out more, this blog post provides a brief history as well as links to resources in the HeinOnline database which the Library subscribes to.
• Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge (2018)- Originally a viral blog post which expressed the author’s frustrations surrounding the way in which discussions about race and racism are led in Britain. Lodge further expands these ideas, exploring issues such as eradicated black history, political purpose of white dominance, whitewashed feminism and the inextricable link between class and race.
• My Name is Leon by Kit de Waal (2017)- Chosen for the Library’s Big Read scheme in 2019, this book tells the story of a young black boy’s quest to reunite with his beloved white half-brother after they are separated in foster care in the early 1980s.

Action at Hallam University
Our reading list includes links to key schemes, approaches and initiatives at the University which aim to support BAME staff and students. This includes the Hallam Approach which is focusing on reducing the Degree Awarding Gap through a Student Race Equity 5 year action plan. The Narrowing the Gaps website has been designed to help you understand more about the degree attainment gap, its causes, and what can be done to eradicate it.

Black History Month Website
The Black History Month website is an incredibly rich and extensive source. The site is continually updated with new articles, events and information. This recent article explores the current theme of Black History Month and how we can come together to make a change for the better.

Get Involved
We welcome and encourage you to get in contact and send in your recommendations for books or resources to be added to this list and the library collections. You can suggest a book or a resource to the Library using our online form.

Sheffield Hallam Students’ Union has a lot of activity planned for this month! All events are linked to the Degree awarding gap, to ensure that events are fully catered to the diverse community at Hallam. Events include:

• Family Book Reading (6^th October, 2pm-3pm, The HUBS)- A reading of a selection of children’s books by Black Authors with Black characters. Students and staff with children are welcome to come along!
• PhDs & Black Student Experiences (18^th October, 2pm-3pm, The HUBS)- Dr Francis Awolowo and Zhane Murrell-Smith will dive into their experiences in academia, accessing PhDs, and opportunities such as the ASPIRE project.
• Black Business Fair & Networking Event (25^th October, 11am-3pm, The HUBS)- Come along to learn and network with successful Black business owners!

Find more events here.