At Impact, we believe that Black History Month 2020 is about reflection, inclusion and a time to look forward and celebrate diversity in our community.
We asked Abdi Mohamed, our Tech team lead to share his thoughts on this important topic.
“I believe that Black History Month is more than 30 days of appreciation and celebrations. Black history goes further, it’s about speaking your truth and letting people know that your experience, no matter how uncomfortable it may be to hear, is one worth listening to.
I believe equality and acceptance starts with understanding that everyone is different and one black persons perspective on race maybe different to another. As not all black people think the same. The media portrays white people as being so diverse when it comes to hair colour, eye colour, accents, character, however for black people it’s mostly based on stereotypes that the media portrays.
Growing up I was always the kid that was known to ask questions, some silly and some serious. What can I say, I was a curious 6yr old boy. One thing I do remember is the uncomfortable change in the atmosphere every time I would mention race and why my skin was different to my then white teacher or even at home with my mom, when I asked her why Jake from school won’t come to my house for sleepovers but his parents allow him to go to Tom’s house or why I was never invited to any of my classmates birthday parties. Like all kids you never really pay much attention to the smaller details when growing up, however when you do grow up you realise that being black has its struggles but being black is also something that I’m very proud of – from my rich history, to the different shades, languages. Africa alone has 2,000 languages, now tell me that’s not diverse.
Black History is an integral part of British culture it’s embedded in our architecture, fashions, food and language. I truly believe that change comes with understanding and listening to the voices that went unheard for many years. We can change the History of tomorrow!”
Our team at Impact pride ourselves on helping businesses and individuals find the right fit by inspiring, empowering and making sure that we as a business are always learning and growing . We will continue to support the achievements of Black people in Britain and all the inspiring black people we continue to learn about.
Happy Black History Month!