The arts and culture sector is and always has been an important lifeblood of British society. Black people have especially been significant contributors in the British Black Arts Movements in the 1980s to that of the pop-culture arena of the 90s and early decades of the new millennium, which poet and filmmaker Siana Bangura poignantly explored in an article for gal-dem.
But working in the field has historically been challenging due to the practice of discrimination across racial and class lines, but more so for Black women, non-binary and trans-identifying people. The contributions they’ve made to the UK’s art scene are immeasurable but in order for that to continue, greater support for access to opportunities and funding is necessary to ensure their ambitions are fully realised.