The group behind Hidden Herstories take questions after the film screening.

Regular readers of the blog may remember that back in January we were asked if we could locate an image of Amy Ashwood Garvey for a film that was being made for the Octavia Foundation. Coincidently, I was in the middle of reading C. L. R. James’s Beyond a Boundary at the time, and a few days later came across a reference to her in it – James describing her as one of only three people he had ever met with both a keen, insightful mind and the oratory ability to fully utilise it (the other two were his aunt and the Barbadian cricketer Frank Worrell).

Although the Americas team were only of limited help, Carole and I were very pleased to be invited to the premiere of the film Hidden Herstories, which was screened on Saturday at the LSE. It’s an inspiring documentary made by 20 young film-makers (aged between 14 and 24) as part of a community initiative organised by the Octavia Foundation and funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The film focuses on four women who have been marginalised by history – Octavia Hill, Amy Ashwood Garvey, Claudia Jones (founder of both the West Indian Gazette and the Notting Hill Carnival), and Jayaben Desai (leader of the 1976 Grunwick strike). The documentary is an articulate and engrossing demonstration of the importance of ‘re-discovering’ these too often marginalised figures and their roles in the development of British culture during the twentieth century. And all the more inspiring for being made by such a young and diverse team. For more information on the project, see the Hidden Herstories website, where you will also find details of the free screenings that are taking place throughout March and April. Do catch one if you can.

 [P. J. H.]