Library diversifies collection with addition of new databases documenting the Black experience

Students and researchers now have access to two major databases of primary resources documenting the Black experience in Britain, the United States and the African diaspora after they were purchased by the Library in collaboration with academic colleagues in the Department of History and English & American Studies.

The Black Thought & Culture and African Diaspora: 1860-Present databases contain a wealth of unique material ranging from immigration records, civil rights documentation and hard to find material from key African American and African diaspora thinkers. The two databases will be spotlighted as Featured databases on the Library website to coincide with October’s Black History Month.

They are indicative of the Library’s ongoing commitment to diversifying the range of primary resources available to the University. In this particular instance they also form part of our response to a key recommendation in the recent Royal Historical Society’s Report on Race, Ethnicity and Equality: to recognise and address "the imperative need to widen taught History curriculums in schools and universities to challenge the racial foundations of the discipline and to reflect the full diversity of human histories."

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