Interesting article. Certainly tells a not so often told story of the
African presence in Britain prior to Britain’s active participation in
trafficking enslavedc Africans.
Here’s my feedback:
Black History Month is actually in its 26th year. Anyway, as we commemorate
its 25th anniversary, some of us now refer to it as African History Month
to underscore the basis upon which it was introduced in 1987: The African
Jubilee Declaration – some of those that put that document together and
championed BHM will be giving us the lowdown at the 25 Years On… event on
Oct. 30 @ Harrow Civic Centre: www.25yearson.eventbrite.com.
Miranda, since you “study Africans in Renaissance Britain”, why do you call
them “black” rather than African in your article? Or was that introduced
by the Guardian sub-editors?
Although I’m not a scholar of the renaissance period, I’m sure Africans
were also called Moors, Ethiopians, Blackamore and such quaint terms, which
aren’t used today.
“John Hawkins, now infamous as the first English slave trader” – weren’t
there other English or British men involved in the trafficking of enslaved
Africans before Hawkins, such as William Towerson and John Lok?
Regards
Kwaku
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