Results tagged “Black” from Birmingham Mail - Veron Graham

Congratulations to Paul Ince on becoming the first Black British manager of a premiership team in taking over at Blackburn Rovers. I for one couldn't be happier now that the man dubbed 'The Guv'nor' on the field is now at the helm of a leading soccer club.

Our airwaves and newspapers have been awash with coverage about this - most welcoming his appointment, some even saying that Paul getting this job proves that there isn't any racism in football.

I suggest that the truth lies somewhat short of that. The dearth of Black managers in British football has to be down to the 'r-word.' Still Ince, who was the first Black player to captain the English national team, has to be commended for a number of reasons. Firstly, for having the guts to take a job at the lowest level of professional football in England, League Two Macclesfield Town. He saved them from what looked like certain relegation; next he leads MK Dons to promotion and cup glory.

I still believe that a Black person operating in most professional fields in Britain has to be somewhat better than his/ her white counterparts but Ince has showed that hard work, success and talent can still pay off.

Gwarn Guv'nor!

As yet another Father's Day draws to a close, I'd like to extend my thanks to those who've made this an extra special day for me.

My first thanks needs to go to my wife and son (the latter pictured above with yours truly), without whom I'd have no reason to greedily collect handclaps, cards, pats on the back and gifts all day today!

Also big respect goes out to those positive brothers from the Caricom Caribbean Restaurant in Warner Street, Birmingham (with a little help from Sting FM) for surprising all the fathers in the house with gifts and kind words. It's not often us Black fathers are even acknowledged, never mind celebrated. It was more than just the rice and peas and jerk chicken that brought joy to my heart this afternoon!

And government legislation is trying to minimise the role of fathers in their kids' lives too! I'm sure the beaming smiles of the all kids in Caricom, not to mention all the others around the country blessed enough to have loving fathers in their lives, have a different story to tell.

Goodnight!

It was a very warm afternoon way back in August 2002 and yours truly had just finished interviewing cricket legend Sir Viv Richards for BBC Midlands Today. As I prepared to do my piece-to-camera, I reckoned that Birmingham was on the brink of something huge.

The subject of the story was New Style Radio, which after years of effort by some seriously committed folks at the old Afro Caribbean Resource Centre in Dudley Road, Winson Green, had just won a broadcasting license to make it the city's first legal Black radio station.

With a potential audience of six million Midlands Today viewers, not to mention the hoards of readers of the numerous column inches the launch wracked up in local and national publications, it seemed as though the stage has been set. Surely now, with experienced presenters and journalists on board, New Style Radio could and would report on the Black community's news and accomplishments without fear of marginalisation or closure by the authorities.

Six years on, those early hopes have not been fulfilled, still don't think that there is a station that has the journalistic integrity and genuine interest in both reflecting and inspiring the Black community like New Style Radio could do.

Do you?

The station has encountered so much controversy in the intervening years. I've got too much class to go into what went wrong or to point the finger - but at least the station is still in existence.

Come on NSR, you know what needs to be done. Do it.

At last, we've got a TV channel to be proud of, BET- Black Entertainment Television! It's been going for ages in the States and now it's here. I was channel-hopping the other day, which I'm kind of prone to doing, when I reached Channel 209 on Sky. Fantastic!

There have been a number of attempts to launch Black-orientated channels here in Britain with varying degrees of success, but none have been able to handle the challenge of consistently broadcasting a good variety of programming.

I don't follow the music scene as avidly as I used to but there are plenty of debate-based shows on BET to float my boat and I'm told, there are movies, serials and general programming to come.

Check it out. What do you think?

Does it annoy you that this channel is American or just glad to have some competitive programming on air?