Several events to mark Windrush Day in Bristol
Music, art exhibitions and even an Opera are planned to celebrate the contribution of the Afro-Caribbean community to British society
A series of events are going ahead in the West Country to end the week in celebration of our Afro Caribbean community.
It comes ahead of Windrush Day on Saturday 22nd June, with various things planned at concert hall the Bristol Beacon including an Opera, photography and art exhibitions and music.
All the events form part of a programme called Windrush To Bristol, created to commemorate the stories and contributions of people from the Windrush generation to West Country and British society.
"Through the event series, Windrush To Bristol invites us to champion a more equitable city for people of all colours, cultures and class," a press release from the Beacon reads.
Bristol can expect to discover the history of Windrush, dive into the music of Black Caribbean artists of Bristol and beyond, and be inspired by a more equitable vision for the future.
One of the events, taking place across several days, is an Opera called Windrush The Journey, performed by the Pegaus Opera Company.
"Bringing the music of Chevalier de Saint Georges, Richard Thompson and Des Oliver to the fore, with words for the opera by Bristolian Edson Burton, the performance will honour the legacy of the Windrush generation with an outstanding fusion of classical music, jazz and blues," a spokesperson for the Beacon said.
Additionally an exhibition of people's thoughts and ideas on race is being displayed, with a vision to create a manifesto on how to achieve racial equality in Bristol.
It's been created in partnership with the group Curiosity UnLld run by Julz Davis, who are also honouring 28 pioneers of the Bristol Bus Boycott by naming seats after them in the main Beacon Hall.
The Boycott in 1963 saw Bristol call for an end to a ban on black drivers at the then Bristol Omnibus Company and is widely credited as paving the way for the UK's first ever Race Relations Act, which was passed in 1965.
You can read more about the Bristol Bus Boycott here.
Julz Davis said: "If you value history, if you value heritage, if you think that these two things are important...then the Bristol Bus Boycott and the Windrush matters because it's not just Black history, it's British history. It's our history."