This year’s Black History Month (UK) celebrates the theme of reclaiming narratives. For Cherron Inko-Tariah, Editor-in-Chief of Black History Month magazine, this means “taking control of our stories and honouring our heroes.” In support of individuals and organisations looking to influence opinion and build understanding, we at Working Voices want to share a few practical thoughts on narrative and storytelling.
Cherron Inko-Tariah explains that reclaiming narratives “is about taking ownership of the stories that define our culture, our contributions, and our very identity…. This theme encourages us to shine a spotlight on the untold stories, the unsung heroes, and the everyday individuals who have made an indelible impact on our communities.”
“I’ve seen how storytelling can recreate memories or allow us to remember significant moments. I’ve seen eyes light up when these stories are remembered, the way a smile can change as they’re told. Although I could see this power first hand, growing up I wasn’t able to harness it myself. I wasn’t given the opportunity to tell my story of being a young Black, British-Nigerian living in London. I wasn’t able to explore what that meant for me, or the story that I wanted to tell.” Yinka Ilori, artist
Celebrating Black history in the UK
In 2023, a YouGov survey of 2,268 UK adults, commissioned by Bloomsbury Publishing, found that 68% said they knew ‘a lot’ or a ‘fair amount’ about British history in general – yet 75% acknowledged that they did not know ‘very much’ or ‘anything at all’ about Black British history. More than half (52%) couldn’t name a single Black British historical figure, while just 7% thought they could name more than four.
More than a third (36%) of Britons surveyed believed that the first Black people came to Britain only in the past 200 years, another 29% weren’t sure. In fact, DNA evidence from the UK’s oldest complete skeleton suggests there were people in southern Britain with dark or dark-to-black skin around 10,000 years ago.
At the moment, the transatlantic slave trade and the US civil rights movement are largely the only Black history taught in UK schools. Commenting on the survey, Atinuke, author of Brilliant Black British History, called for more integration of Black British history into schools and universities.
Broader education can better inform workplace diversity, equity and inclusion. Within a workforce, a wider understanding of historical narratives ensures that current and future diversity, equity and inclusion strategies are more readily adopted and absorbed into company culture.
“When stories are left out, a section of humanity is left out and when you hear someone’s story you can connect with them in a way and it makes it so much harder for you…to discriminate against someone…when you know their story.” Brian Michael Smith
Sharing a narrative is a skill that can be developed through a few simple tips. Cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner suggested we are 22 times more likely to remember a fact when it has been wrapped in a story. When you’ve got a story to tell, whether it’s about the past, the future, your own abilities, or other people’s misunderstanding, where do you start?
How to create a meaningful story
Stories often begin with a question, perhaps focusing on something that has been misunderstood or overlooked. Misassumptions can be unpicked with questions about their accuracy. Questions demand an explanation. Explanations are stories and stories are an easy way for other people to absorb information, which is important when futures are at stake.
Presenting questions, breaking down misperceptions, and offering explanations are useful steps when thinking about the shape of your story, whether you’re focusing on historical analysis, personal reflections, or pitching a new idea.
Developing a structure
Keep your key points front and centre by structuring your story. An opening question immediately ignites expectation – people are expecting an answer. In other words, they’re listening. Once you’ve got them hooked, find a structure that will lead them step by step towards your conclusion.
The strongest structure breaks a story into three smaller parts, making it easier to remember – both for you and your audience. The three parts are the beginning, middle and end, simple enough but as a process they’re easily overlooked:
- Beginning: set the scene so that you and the audience are on the same page. You’re simply creating a level playing field. No twists, no turns, just a bare introduction.
- Middle: the level playing field is not all it seems. Perhaps long-standing assumptions are incorrect – there is a need for new understanding, which is why you’re here, explaining the truth.
- Ending: bring the facts together by summing everything up in a decisive conclusion, perhaps including potential decisions and actions.
While structure logically leads the audience through your story, a gentle touch of emotion helps them accept your conclusion. Whether you’re talking about your personal life or giving a presentation at work, the best stories are delivered with conviction – they need to be, to ensure that people believe you.
Connect with your audience
A common mistake in storytelling, perhaps the most common, is to forget your audience. When explaining something, whether to one person or many, it’s easy to forget the extent of knowledge you have compared to them. You are likely to know more, on your specific subject at least, which is why they’re ready to listen to what you have to say. It’s important to be clear in your messaging.
Your audience want to hear your take on things. It’s not just the facts they want to hear, it’s you and yourinterpretation. They want to see what you know, which means building rapport with them. Structure and a touch of emotion help here, so do open gestures, eye contact, and interaction – perhaps in the form of questions and answers.
When speaking to a group of people, it’s natural to feel a little nervous. Try thinking of them not as a homogenous bunch but as one person – someone who’s listening to what you have to say, just remember to maintain eye contact with everyone else too.
“I did not want to continue to take on or perpetuate the myths around me, that placed Black people as peripheral to Suffolk life, nor did I want to contribute to any community work or project where we were passive players, consulted or have our stories used in a tokenistic manner, portrayed in a biased way. I wanted to be the one who was a part of the telling of it, the questioning and challenging of tone, intonation, use of language when conveying stories from the diaspora.” Imani Sorhaindo – Community Curator – Suffolk Black Community Forum Heritage
A journey, not a destination
The celebration of Black history has been described as a “journey and not a destination.” Black History Month is not just an annual event. For businesses, it’s a reminder of the permanent need for an inclusive company culture.
Inclusivity is not a one-off session of unconscious bias training. It’s a persistent commitment to diversity and inclusion training, leading to an ongoing culture of respect, trust and psychological safety. In practice, this includes a hiring policy that focuses on candidates’ talent rather than their names, along with proactive policies in mentoring, networking and promotion.
Led by the board, rather than just left to HR, this is a strategy that reflects ongoing corporate direction: inclusivity involves everyone. By assessing and developing their culture, businesses can be sure that their own story is part of the progressive future rather than an exclusive past.
