Of relevance to ‘us’. My innumerable comments/questions are in green.

Anniversaries Section: brief note that on 14 April 1816 ‘Barbados…Bussa leads a revolt against the island’s colonial government...’    Very intersting that the revolt was not against the slave masters!  Is this what we should expect from the BBC?  I wish there’d been a longer article! How many readers of this magazine know anything about the Caribbean (‘West Indies’ to most), never mind revolts against the slave masters!

An article for 17 April 1961: ‘Bay of Pigs fiasco fails to oust Castro’: ‘CIA attempt to spark popular revolt in Cuba ends in disaster.’  ‘Disaster’ for whom?

  Hidden Histories Section which is authored by David Olusoga. “In 1916, brothers who fought on opposing sides were reunited”: ‘Even now, a century after the conflict ended, the role that soldiers from the Indian subcontinent played in the Frist World War remains largely forgotten’.  Yes, but the African and West Indian troops are just as forgotten! See my article: ’An information “black hole”: World War I in Africa’, in László Z. Karvalics (ed), Information History of the First World War , UNESCO/ L’Harmattan Publishing, 2016 [also available on https://everydaylivesinwar.herts.ac.uk/2018/05/an-information-black-hole-world-war-i-in-africa/ ]

A very intersting article by Pamela Roberts, Christian Frederick Cole, England’s first black barrister. ‘Born in rural Sierra Leone in 1852, Cole fought his way to Oxford University and qualified as England’s first black barrister.’ Not the happiest of lives…

Reviews Section  Brief discussion with Petina Gappah about her novel, Out of Darkness, Shining Light, which is about David Livingstone’s explorations in Africa and the Africans who carried his body to the coast so it could be shipped back to England. She says: ‘The Victorian explorers did it all alone. Without the help of the many Africans they travelled with, their journeys would simply not have been possible.’  But, ofcourse, Africans knew their way around that vast continent. Just look at the trade routes! Has anyone read this book? I wonder if the author acknowledges this.

Encounters Section: ‘The story of abolitionist and freedom fighter Harriet Tubman …in terrific biopic Oscar nominated Cynthia Erivo plays Tubman….Harriet available to stream now and on DVD from 30 March / Cert:12 ‘