BHM Training & Reform’s Next BLM Discussion

Last month we had our first BLM discussion back in Reform’s space with our staff and some special guests to help guide the conversation.

For anyone who is not familiar, we hold a monthly BLM discussion in which we focus on a different piece of media or writing that tackles this topic. The discussion aims to create a space to learn, reflect and discuss the future actions that we can take as individuals and as an organisation.

To celebrate this year’s Black History Month we invited Actress, Writer and Producer Melissa Dean to perform a live piece of spoken word in which she covered the topics of race, trauma and her personal experiences. Melissa has also recently joined our team as Reform’s first ever Artist In Residence. This new year-long programme provides the artist with a small bursary, free space and support to secure new paid work both within our organisation and with our networks.

Following Melissa’s performance and our reflective discussion on the piece, we welcomed the amazing Jay Chambers and Parise from Black in MCR to deliver anti-racism training. The session explored and questioned the roots of British Culture, looked at racial injustice in the music industry, and made us think of what else we can do to improve our relationships and actions within our own organisation.

We’ll be hoping back onto Zoom for this month’s BLM discussion taking place on Monday 15th November from 4PM-5PM. The focal piece will be ‘Dark Matter: A History of the Afrofuture’, a documentary available to watch on BBC Iplayer. From Jean-Michel Basquiat to Grace Jones, ‘Dark Matter’ explores how black artists use the sci-fi genre of Afrofuturism to examine black history and imagine new alternative futures.

This session is open for anyone, so please contact lewys@reformradio.co.uk to register your interest!