There are some places you travel where you instantly feel at home. The paths feel familiar underfoot, the air smells invitingly fragrant and you somehow seem to instinctively know your way. For me, it’s the city of Leeds. As you traverse the grey winding roads and are welcomed into her bosom, there’s the overwhelming sense of sanctuary. Every time my train snakes into the station - the canal side vistas and semi-brutalist structures interlocking on the horizon - I feel I’m coming home.
Over the years, I’ve come to know most of the folds and edges of Leeds. There’s the riotous university territory in Headingley and Hyde Park, where I frequently spent the night as a student visiting friends. The wharfs of the city where one escapes to in search of beauty and culture and fine dining. The green spaces of Temple Newsam and Roundhay Park which are nestled in suburbia.
But the place most familiar to me is Chapeltown; Potternewton Park its jewel framed by various warrens of beautiful 1880s terraces.
As a child, we ventured to Chapeltown on a weekly basis to source the ingredients my Dad could not live without: plantain and cassava, breadfruit and yams, and peppers likely to cause first degree burns to your tongue.
And every year, the August Bank Holiday was promised to Chapeltown, where the streets would be given over to the Leeds West Indian Carnival. Leeds Carnival is an institution, beloved by all. As revellers dagger and dutty whine, the bass of the rig bypasses your ears to pound soca straight into your heart. The smell of curried or jerk chicken hangs so thick you can taste it.
Leeds is a city famed for its cultural diversity and home to Europe’s longest running authentic carnival parade. It’s a city that celebrates and embraces its blend of inhabitants. It’s why we’ll be celebrating Leeds’ legacy during Black History Month.
Black History Month takes place in the month of October in the UK. It is a time to learn more about - and celebrate - the African and Caribbean diasporas and the richness they’ve added to our culture. It’s a time to raise awareness of the challenges members of the community still face. It’s a chance to put into action the words or promises you made when you posted a black square over lockdown. Because although BHM spans just 31 days, now more than ever, we need to recognise the detrimental impact of marginalisation of our black communities.
Throughout October, SLBPR will be celebrating our black heroes of Leeds through images, resources, interviews and profiles. Keep an eye out on our socials and get in touch if you would like to get involved.