BLACK HERITAGE IN NI
About The Project
Launched in July 2022 by the North West Migrants Forum and funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Our mission is to promote racial equality and challenge racism by uncovering and celebrating the often-overlooked contributions of Black communities in Northern Ireland.
Pathways to Progress
The Story of Our Project
The Black Lives Matter protests in Northern Ireland in 2020 brought significant media attention and sparked public discussions, which also highlighted the gaps in knowledge about Black history, as well as the contributions and presence of Black people in the region. This prompted the North West Migrants Forum to intensify its focus on Black history.
In 2020 and 2021, NWMF delivered educational programmes centred on Black history and heritage in schools, community groups and local councils. We organised online debates and hosted a Black history quiz night. Our inaugural Black History Summit in 2021 was incredibly well received, inspiring us to further expand our initiatives.
With the support of our primary funder, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, along with the dedication of our supporters and the hard work of our researcher, Dr Naomi Green, we successfully conducted the development phase involving extensive research and oral interviews.
Now, as we move into the delivery phase of the project, we want to utilise this gathered history to break down stereotypes by emphasising the diversity of the Black population in Northern Ireland and their contributions at all levels of society.
Our history should be representative and inclusive of everyone, reflecting how migration and interactions with the wider world have shaped our experiences.
Researchers
Dr Naomi Green
Dr Naomi Green is the former programmes manager and lead researcher for the NWMF ‘Hidden History Project’ exploring Black heritage in Northern Ireland. She is currently Policy and Public Affairs officer at BIMA. Her PhD focused on the integration and belonging of Muslims in Northern Ireland. As an independent researcher and lecturer, she specialises in Islamophobia, the Muslim community, and social integration and is currently developing an independent project to mark Muslim Lascar graves in Belfast. Naomi is actively involved in various community initiatives, serves on the Executive Board of the Northern Ireland Interfaith Forum, and is a member of the Clonard Monastery Peace and Reconciliation Commission.
Chantelle Lunt
Chantelle Lunt is a writer, lecturer, PhD researcher, and activist. She has a professional background in policing and children’s social care, her PhD research explores the further educational journeys of care-experienced individuals. As the Chair of Merseyside Alliance for Racial Equality CIC (MARE), she leads grassroots, community-driven education initiatives that promote racial equality across Merseyside. Chantelle is also Halewood’s Mayor and a Knowsley Borough Councillor, making history as the first Black woman elected to these positions.
With a strong commitment to social justice, Chantelle’s work spans political, academic, and activist spaces, advocating for meaningful change in education, policing, and racial equality.
Dr Ebun Joseph
Dr Ebun Joseph is a diversity and race relations consultant; CEO and founder of the Institute of Anti-racism and Black Studies (IABS); special rapporteur on racial equality and racism in Ireland; module coordinator and lecturer in Black Studies at University College Dublin (UCD), the first in Ireland which she started in 2018; and founder of the African Scholars Association Ireland (AfSAI), which she chaired from 2018 to 2022. Dr Joseph held the position of Career Development Consultant at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland from 2017 to 2021 and was a teaching fellow at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) 2019–2020, Ireland, and a Training and Employment Officer with Employment for People from Immigrant Communities (EPIC) between 2007 and 2017. Ebun is an author, TV panellist, columnist and equality activist. With a research focus on labour markets and race relations, she has presented at several conferences, businesses, and non-profit organisations. Her authored books include Critical Race Theory and Inequality in the labour market: Racial Stratification in Ireland (Manchester University Press, 2020) and Equity in the workplace: Stories of Black Irish women in Ireland (2024; 2025). She also co-authored the book Challenging Perceptions of Africa in schools: Critical approaches to Global Justice Education (Routledge, 2020). Dr. Joseph’s 2020 Irish Journal of Sociology article ‘Composite counter storytelling as a technique for challenging ambivalence about race and racism in the labour market in Ireland’ won the 2020 IRJ Prize awarded to the paper adjudicated to represent the best original contribution to the journal in a given year.
vision statement
Our vision is to foster an inclusive society in Northern Ireland that celebrates and acknowledges the heritage of Black and minoritised communities. In alignment with the North West Migrants Forum’s strategic aim of ‘decolonising heritage, building a shared future,’ we are dedicated to transforming societal perceptions of our history through education and advocacy.
We are proud to be supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the primary funder of the Black Heritage in NI: The Hidden History Project. With funding made possible by National Lottery, we received £100,000 for the development phase and a further £500,000 to support the current delivery phase of the project. Their support has enabled in-depth archival research and is now helping us bring the project to life through exhibitions, educational resources and creative outputs like a book and heritage map.
We are also grateful for the ongoing support and collaboration with Ulster University. As part of this partnership, our Black History Summits are held on Ulster University campuses, helping us share the stories and heritage at the heart of this project with wider audiences.
Another valued supporter of this project has been the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, which has consistently supported our annual Black History Summits from the beginning. The Housing Executive’s continued backing has played a key role in raising awareness and promoting Black history in Northern Ireland.
