We finally wrapped up on the last of our interview videos about the intercession of being Black and Disabled in our #BlackDisabledLivesMatter for Black History Project, funded by the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
We at Culture Access are very proud to host this webinar on the 5th October to celebrate Black History Month. This is a celebration as well as a discussion on the intersection of being Black and Disabled and other identities. We welcome everybody to join us at this webinar which will have BSL and captions.
Joanna is an award-winning, agenda-setting Diversity champion and recruiter, social campaigner, TV executive, broadcaster and journalist. As a campaigner for diversity within the publishing, TV, Radio, Digital and Creative Industries, Joanna is regularly at the centre of the diversity agenda, leading conversations around inclusion and representation.
Julie is a Black Disabled activist who advocates for racial and disability equality. She‘s been campaigning for the Black disabled community for more than three decades by setting organisations, crowdfunding, and advising the government on how to better support this demographic. Jaye Charles’s success as an activist is shown through the multiple awards she has won from Lifetime achievement award, Excellence in Diversity to the Royal Association of Disabled People. One of the organisations that Julie Jaye Charles has set up, The Equalities National Council (ENC), is the only charity which is Black and minority ethnic user-led disabled peoples organisation in the UK. The organisation is also renowned for primarily focusing on delivering expert advocacy and mentoring support on behalf of BME disabled people and their carers.
Viv Cameron
Viv is a retired barrister and former training and development officer on the executive Committee of the National Black Crown Prosecution Association. Due to chronic pain issues she identifies as disabled. As a black feminist, she is currently is active in the voluntary sector as Chair of the South East London Wool and Textile Festival. (SELWAT) and CraftA, a community arts group working to make creativity a right for everyone. She abhors hypocrisy in public life and is interested in social and creative egalitarianism, political intersectionality, charity and social enterprise compliance. She is a keen brainstormer and sometime textile artist.
Yannick Nyah
Yannick is a Founding Board Member and Director at BME VOLUNTEERS CIC, a service and goal-oriented person, with 17 years background in physical, emotional and psychological well-being best and bad practices. Yannick’s core competencies include quantitative and qualitative analysis, active listening, some complex problem solving, community outreach and engagement work, excellent communication and time-management skills.
The role requires handling multiple stakeholder, staff and client work with, accuracy and efficiency. Suffering with mental health challenges, somewhere on the spectrum and a recovering alcoholic. In 2017, he had a bicycle accident which left him needing a major knee operation and disabled. This is what has lead to his career choice today.
Maya Meikle
I am 22 years old and I have a disability. I was born with Hemiplegia, a form of Cerebral Palsy, as well as my twin sister. I am outspoken when you get to know me but, sometimes very quiet. My disability has affected me in so many ways, emotionally and physically. I am very conscious about how I look, and what people think of me. I do not like to be in the spotlights. My disability affects the right side of my body which causes a weakness in my movement. I was 3 months premature with my twin sister. I am very petite in size and weight due to my disability. As I grew older, I learnt how to accept my disability a little bit more, but I am still working to fully accept that ‘its ok to be different. As part of my degree studying Digital Film Production, I made a mini documentary about disability. For this project I wanted to create a platform where young black women who have a disability can tell their stories about what it is like living with a disability and how it impacts their day to day life. What barriers they come across and how they deal with it.
Fleur Perry joins us in adding her own favourite recipe. We look forward to having more favourites from her.
— This year has been unkind to everyone, and many people have responded with kindness.
Everyone’s locked down, some of us are even still
shielding, and the only way any of us are getting through this is by supporting
each other. I’ve started thinking of this as Mutually Assured Survival.
There’s been a lot of people who have spotted when I’ve
floundered, and sent me exactly what was needed at exactly the right moment. At
least half of these people happen to fly the rainbow flag, and so I’ve chosen
to make Pride cookies as a way of saying thank you. I won’t embarrass you by
saying who you are, but you know.
I made them originally during Pride Month, but you can
eat solidarity cookies at any time of year. There’s no rules. Just crunchy
chocolaty goodness.
Cookies won’t solve the problem of some LGBTQ+ disabled
people being locked down with and relying on unsupportive family or care staff.
I know people in this situation, and the pandemic has made it much harder, if
not impossible, to live independently for the first time, or change care
provider, or hire new PAs.
Cookies will not change the fact that when travel becomes
safer, there are still some places where some of my friends won’t be safe.
There are some destinations which will never get my money, until everyone else
can go there too.
Cookies can’t remove accessibility barriers to events,
meaning that even when people can be together again, some will still be left
out. Ramps and accessible toilets and quieter spaces and video subtitles and so
on are all well-established ideas; exclusion is unnecessary.
Fleur enjoys experimenting with new recipes and cooking old favourites. Always assisted by someone who can take care of the chopping, lifting, and mixing, Fleur’s role in the kitchen is to create new flavour combinations, find ways of changing recipes to include what she has in the house or to work around her intolerances, and to lick the bowl.
I suggested a tortilla bake for Dennis previously but after a long conversation (about food and access to food among other topics) we realised that we have not heard about food and access needs for autistic people. The need for textures and ease for swallowing. Each person has their individual needs and I made this for her to follow with her PA.
People say Good things come to those who wait so here are the videos of the performances at the ‘Disabled&Proud’ Festival last November for the International Day of Disabled People held at Woolwich Central Library.
We have created a Youtube channel for the videos of that night’s performances and at this page.
As a disabled performance artist, it was a privilege to have participated in the second half of the festival in Greenwich Library. The festival was a great platform to showcase my art to the disabled community and for me to be exposed to other disabled artists, of whom I may not have met and experienced their work had it not been for the festival. – Sorena, performing artist
This festival was partly to celebrate Disability History Month ( Disability History Month runs from 22 November to 22 December every year ) and also the UN International Day of Disabled People (3rd December. The theme for this 2019 IDPD is ‘Promoting the participation of persons with disabilities and their leadership: taking action on the 2030 Development Agenda’ ).
the audience performance in the evening
Norman Mine with hoover
‘I am a strong black woman’
Lucy Sheen at workshop
Dennis and Jacqui
evening performers
The evening performances were filmed
Miss Jacqui belting out a number
Naomi telling her story
The day started at the library with the exhibitions and information stalls, there is much footfall at Woolwich Centre Library on a Saturday afternoon with disabled and non disabled visitors.
The information stalls and exhibitions
setting up stall
from the Her Centre
Sue at an information stall
Exhibition ‘Disabled Women’s Digital Quilt’
Presentation : ‘Disabled Women’s Digital Quilt’
Exhibition: *Neurodiversions*
In *Neurodiversions* Annabel Crowley and Shura Joseph-Gruner present their creative responses to their day-to-day neurodiversions.
Exhibition : Digital Quiltof Disabled Women (pilot by Eleanor Lisney and Natasha Hirst and others) will be presented. This project was one of those joint shortlisted in the Royal Borough of Greenwich bid to be the borough of culture.
This pilot series of photos and videos was organised and co produced with the disabled women featured, by Natasha Hirst and Eleanor Lisney. They were all taken on the same one day at the Jetty cafe, Greenwich Peninsula. The photos were taken to highlight the lives, work and diversity of some disabled women in London, to be a pilot of a Digital Quilt of Disabled women.
This festival is partly to celebrate Disability History Month ( Disability History Month runs from 22 November to 22 December every year ) and also the UN International Day of Disabled People (3rd December. The theme for this 2019 IDPD is ‘Promoting the participation of persons with disabilities and their leadership: taking action on the 2030 Development Agenda’).
Joanna is an award-winning, agenda-setting Diversity champion and recruiter, social campaigner, TV executive, broadcaster and journalist. As a campaigner for diversity within the publishing, TV, Radio, Digital and Creative Industries, Joanna is regularly at the centre of the diversity agenda, leading conversations around inclusion and representation.
~~Drum roll~~~
the Performers
Sorena Francis : Sorena is a performance artist, writer and activist. She engages in activities around disability rights and justice, and ways to shape and improve services for sick and disabled people. She’s is a Thrive London Champion, an initiative that seeks to improve the mental wellbeing of all Londoners.
Naomi Jacobs : Naomi will be telling a personal story of moments on the margins as an autistic person, reflecting on stories as tools for stepping more boldly into who we are, as activists and as people.
Norman Mine : Norman is a Neapolitan artist based in London who practices is exploring aspects of ordinary personal experiences and how the modern obsession of the self is merging into and shifting between narratives of both fiction and paranoia.
Erika Leadbeater : Erika is a multidisciplinary Artist, activist and ambassador of The Survivors Trust. Her work is a sensory celebration of feminist and social issues.
Miss Jacqui : Miss Jacqui is a poet, songwriter, artist and truthteller.
Richard Downes : Richared is a poet and writes for Disability Arts Online. “I always wanted to write. I practiced for years. I played guitar and sang. I took photographs. ”
Dennis Queen : Dennis is a grassroots activist and musician who has been performing in the disabled people’s movement since the turn of the century.
Chisato Minamimura : Chisato will be there with her Scored in Silence – Dance Documentary Film screening of excerpt from “Scored in Silence” (12 mins) followed by a Q&A from Chisato Minamimura and producer Amy Zamarripa Solis (8 mins)
This festival is partly to celebrate Disability History Month ( Disability History Month runs from 22 November to 22 December every year ) and also the UN International Day of Disabled People (3rd December. The theme for this 2019 IDPD is ‘Promoting the participation of persons with disabilities and their leadership: taking action on the 2030 Development Agenda’ ).
30th Nov 2019 Saturday at Woolwich Centre Library.
Exhibitions
In *Neurodiversions* Annabel Crowley and Shura Joseph-Gruner present their creative responses to their day-to-day neurodiversions.
Annabel and Shura putting some of their pictures up at Woolwich Centre Library
“everyday wandering; going off topic; (de-)stimming; trying to enjoy the ride” In this joint exhibition, Annabel Crowley and Shura Joseph-Gruner present their creative responses to their day-to-day neurodiversions. Ask Annabel or Shura if you would like a talking tour of the works! Includes: photography, video and print. Bios: Annabel Crowley is an artist and MA researcher into cultures of neurodivergence at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London (UAL). She has worked in and around disability since 2008, currently as an access and inclusion specialist (+ visiting lecturer) at UAL and a co-director of Culture Access. Shura Joseph-Gruner is an artist and teacher whose practice includes photography and curation. He works between the Brit School and UAL, helping to facilitate the creative practices of disabled students from Key Stage 4 to postgraduate studies.
Exhibition : Digital Quiltof Disabled Women (pilot by Eleanor Lisney and Natasha Hirst and others) will be presented. This project is one of those joint shortlisted in the Royal Borough of Greenwich bid to be the borough of culture.
This pilot series of photos and videos was organised and co produced with the disabled women featured, by Natasha Hirst and Eleanor Lisney. They were all taken on the same one day at the Jetty cafe, Greenwich Peninsula.
The photos were taken to highlight the lives, work and diversity of some disabled women in London, to be a pilot of a Digital Quilt of Disabled women.
Videos will be shown at the library.
Photo of Natasha (with camera) and Eleanor (in wheelchair) by Emma
photos (top to bottom) of Christiane, Ciara, Natasha, Joanna, Emma, Sarifa and Eleanor
We have many friends who come visit us in Greenwich. Some of these friends are disabled and, quite a few of them, are wheelchair users.
We thought it would be useful to write up some information for visitors – especially those who are here for a day trip to Greenwich.
Arrival
By DLR /Cutty Sark Station Cutty Sark DLR station has step-free access. It is a light metro station on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) Bank-Lewisham Line in Greenwich Town Centre. By train there is a train service (from London Bridge station). From the station bus 177 will take you into the town centre. However, it is within walking distance but the pavements are not too even with some cobblestones and sometimes blocked by dustbins. The station itself is accessible. By the underground/North Greenwich station is on the accessible Jubilee Line. From the station, there are many buses, you can take the bus 129 or bus 188 (you can take this bus from Waterloo or Russell Square all the way from London) towards Greenwich centre. By boatThames Clippers is another way of getting to Greenwich from the city of London. They are accessible by ramps. (but they are not always easily negotiable. You might require some help.)
the DLR station at Cutty Sark
Sites to visit
Greenwich landscape from the Observatory with tall buildings in the background and historical buildings in the foreground
These are the sites we would recommend as places not to be missed in a visit to Greenwich:
The National Maritime Museum / Greenwich Park
The National Maritime Museum is a free museum good for the whole family and it has Greenwich Park
The Observatory is worth a walk up even if you dont go in (price £14 – £16}. It has a great view. There are two routes up, a steep path or a more gradual but longer route).
The 02 is adjacent to the North Greenwich Tube station. There are also buses (188) connecting to Russell Square and (108) to Stratford International as well as to neighbourhood areas like Woolwich and Lewisham. There is also parking free for those with Blus Badges.
There is an accessible toilet (needs a radar key) by the exit of the N Greenwich station. And at the 02 with the restaurants too, many of them have accessible toilets. And a Changing Places toilet.
portaloo
At the city centre, near the Cutty Sark, there is a portable loo.
All along there are restaurants and pubs, some of which have accessible toilets although it must be said that they are not so easy to locate.
For part of two last weekends ( 5-7th and 12-14th July) , I happened to be at Greenwich Peninsula when the the official opening was celebrated – of The Tide, “the elevated riverside park on Greenwich Peninsula, reported as created by the co-designers of the High Line in NYC.
The lift from the front next to the 02 is not working as yet so the ramp has to be used for access to the walkway.
view from the ramp
view from the ramp
view from the ramp
view of walkway
view of walkway
view from the ramp
While it was well attended, the festival was not over crowded. The festival goers enjoyed the music.
Part of the musical events
Access
Normally for that area, it is all level access. However, some of the higher cable casings which were used to keep the electricity cables protected were barriers for wheelchair users and those with mobility issues. It is curious that while many of the raised strips were low and accessible, some were not, especially those near the street food stalls.
I will revisit and write more on this area – more events have been announced for the present future.
chinese chicken noodle soup
