What is Young Black ARCtivists?
Young Black ARCtivists is a youth project funded by Children in Need We Move Fund & Ubele. The intention of the project was to create an anti-racist TikTok account to share anti-racist educational resources and co-create a safe, joyful & empowered online space for Black British Cumbrian youth.
Young Black ARCtivists was born from a previous ARC Youth project, The Fell We Climb. The young people explicitly expressed wanting to reach more young people who look like them and identify with their experiences. They wanted to use TikTok to engage with others and continue to raise awareness. They wanted to help other Black youth to not to feel alone, to have their experiences validated and make them feel that they can take action too. They also expressed wanting their white peers, their teachers and wider communities to understand and support them.
@youngblackarctivists Where we live. 🏡 #YoungBlackARCtivists #CumbrianAndBlack #AntiRacistCumbria #lakedistrictnationalpark #lakedistrict #lakedistrict_uk #Cumbria #cumbrianlife #cumbrianliving #lakesuk #waterfallsuk #sunriseuk #sunsetuk #hikinglakesuk #walkinglakedistrict #walkthelakes #wildswimminguk #wildswimmingengland #wildswimminglakedistrict
What did we want to achieve?
- To equip Black youth to develop a self-care and resilience toolkit to protect their mental health whilst navigating racism.
- To grow the level of confidence and self-assurance of Black youth to be able to talk about anti-racism.
- To develop a stronger sense of belonging of Black youth living in Cumbria and nationally.
The project kicked off in Spring 2023, we mobilised Young Black ARCtivists in the development phase of the grant. We started with a series of online workshops, in the early stages of the project where we conceptualised the project, bringing together all the young people’s hopes for the project. The foundation of the project was a series of events across the country put together by incredibly talented Black facilitators and creatives.
What did we get up to?
- In November 2023, the young people went through a Self-care,Resilience-building and How to Navigate Social Media training – the series of workshops aimed to equip the young people with a toolkit to protect their mental health while navigating social media. As a result, the young people are more aware and prepared for the challenging dynamics of social media, especially when sharing about antiracism and Black lived-experience.
- In early March 2024 we had our Winter Residential in Ennerdale, up in the North-West Lakes, with the Youth Worker dream team: Chim, Ranvia & Lekhani. Over the weekend we went on long walks, had a series of filmmaking workshops, a talent showcase and a starry bonfire night. The weekend in the depths of winter bonded the group and made important friendships.
@youngblackarctivists #Residential2024 ✨🖤YoungBlackARCtivists. @Anti Racist Cumbria #whatwevebeenupto #antiracism #antitacistcumbria #youth #ARCyouth #youthproject #antiracistyouthproject #youthempowerment #youthempowermentuk #BlackAndBritish #YoungBlackBritish
- Later in March, we travelled down to Liverpool for a Black Joy Heritage daytrip put together by Creative Practitioner, Tavia Panton with the support of artist, Jioni Warner. We explored Liverpool sights learning about its history and how it intertwines with each of ours – remembering the stories of joy, hope, art and love alongside the narratives of injustice and resilience. Emphasising the rich and complex history trumping the perpetually single Black history narrative of pain and struggle. Each young person received homemade Liverpool Black Joy notepads that held hand-written poems by strong Black poets and activists. The noteboards turned into sketchbooks as the young people made their way through the city. As they walked through the city, they read aloud poems at special sites.
@youngblackarctivists #LiverpoolBlackJoyHeritageTour with TaviaPanton. We explored the Black history of Liverpool, read poems by iconic Black poets & activists and finished off the day at #BlueCoatMuseum with a creative workshop facilitated by artist JioniWarner. 🌇🖤 #YoungBlackARCtivists #whatwevebeenupto #antiracism #antitacistcumbria #youth #ARCyouth #youthproject #antiracistyouthproject #youthempowerment #youthempowermentuk #BlackAndBritish #YoungBlackBritish
Looking up at the buildings in Liverpool city centre our young people learned about the history and legacy behind the grandeur; did you know that at the close of the eighteenth century Liverpool accounted for 80% of Britain’s activity in the transatlantic trade of enslaved people? The group headed to Bluecoat Contemporary Arts Centre, where Bryan Biggs led a session and Q&A about colonial legacies, and Jioni Warner rounded up the day by leading a Black joy art session where everyone designed their own tote bags. A day learning about such heavy topics isn’t easy, but thanks to our youth workers and to Tavia, Bryan and Jioni, our young people came away buzzing with ideas and feeling even more connected as a group. – (Taken from a LinkedIn post by Anti Racist Cumbria on the day).
What did the young people think about the Liverpool trip?
“When we talked about Bolt Street and slavery – it really hit me thinking about the middle bit of the slave trade and how they treated humans on the ships. I really enjoyed the trip and how we were learning new things”
“Thanks for the trip, it was so fun and I loved how I got to meet new people and learn fun facts.. so thank you!!”
- In April, we had a Songwriting Workshop in Kendal (South Lakes) facilitated by Tobi Grey, a Birmingham-based Nigerian singer/songwriter. We learnt about Black music history and the power of music in activism, looking at the examples of Fela Kuti, Bob Marley, Beyoncé and The Black Eyed Peas. The best part of the day was the young people actually writing and performing their own song Spotlight! (The video of the full song and lyrics here).
@youngblackarctivists Our song 🌟#Spotlight 🌟 YoungBlackARCtivists. @Anti Racist Cumbria #whatwevebeenupto #antiracism #songwritingworkshop #antitacistcumbria #powerofmusic #musicispower #creativity #creativeexpression #musicmaking #youth #ARCyouth #youthproject #antiracistyouthproject #iamme #spotlightonyou #spotlightonme #spotlightonus #wearewhoweare #callmebymyname #unapologetic #unapologeticiswhoiam #youthempowerment #youthempowermentuk #BlackAndBritish #YoungBlackBritish
- Bringing our first year of the grant to a close in May was our last event of the project, a Contemporary-Hip-hop Dance Workshop in Stockton-on Tees, in North-East England. The group spent the day with a brilliant young, Black dancing group All in Youth Project. It was HUGE fun! The Young Black ARCtivists quickly formed friendships with the hosting youth group.
@youngblackarctivists #Afrohiphop #danceworkshop with a brilliant young, Black dancing group AllinYouth. 🖤 🪩 it was so much fun! The dance group were so energetic, happy, friendly & supportive! #antiracistcumbria #youngblackarctivists #danceexpression #brilliantblackdancers #youthempowerment #youthempowermentuk #BlackAndBritish #YoungBlackBritish #whatwevebeenupto #antiracism #antitacistcumbria #creativity #creativeexpression #youth #ARCyouth #youthproject #antiracistyouthproject
What did the young people think of the dance workshop?
“The day was SO good! The dancers were just so happy and friendly.”
“The group was so supportive! We learnt loooads of new things and made new friends! I’m going to miss them…”
“Definitely want to do this again!”
“I thought it was genuinely good – everyone was so energetic and happy, it felt good to vibe with them. Learning the dances made me feel so encouraged.”
How have the young people been impacted by this project?
At the beginning of the project, there were a couple young people who were initially uncertain and reluctant to participate and were subsequently reserved and quiet during sessions. Over several months of the project, we saw how the young people continued to show up and gradually open up. As their confidence grew, one of the young people in particular increasingly became an active participant. The Young Black ARCtivists as a whole have become more comfortable articulating and being proactive in addressing racism and antiracism. They are more likely to lead conversations, challenge antiracist and discriminatory behaviours, and share their perspectives.
What next?
As we were bringing the project to a close – we received the news that Young Black ARCtivists were invited to apply for a grant extension! We did and we got it! Which means… the project will continue for the next two years! It’s HUGE and we’re very excited! Our project goals were ambitious (rightly so because we need to dream BIG!). The Young Black ARCtivists now get to spend the next 2 years continuing their work of creating an online empowering space for Black youth! They hope schools might see it as a resource made by young people FOR young people. As the project grows, we see more young people engaging with our initiatives and the wider community learning about the group and Anti Racist Cumbria. We envision an increase in participation and allyship gradually impacting wider change within our county.
@youngblackarctivists We are young. We are Black. We are #ARC @Anti Racist Cumbria We are YoungBlackARCtivists. #YoungAndBlack #AntiRacistCumbria #AntiRacistEducation #AntiRacistResources #AntiRacismUK #BlackAndBritishYouth #YouthActivism #BlackJoy #YoungBlackAndBritish #AntiRacismNow #AntiRacismTikTok #AntiRacismDaily #AntiRacismInSchools
Links of interest:
- Our Young Black ARCtivists TikTok account here.
- Form of interest: If you know of any young Black people of African Caribbean heritage in Cumbria who would like to get involved with the TikTok project in future, please send this form to them.
- Anti Racist Cumbria Volunteer form: If you would like to volunteer your skills to our working teams or if you have something you’re particularly passionate about, we’d love to hear from you!
