The year 2022 marks the fifth anniversary of Black History Month in Belgium. After four successful editions, this year’s focus will be on ‘the power of assembly.’ Documenting the different ways Black people in Belgium have gathered together throughout the years and acted in concert to raise awareness, call into question, and explore new ways of thinking, acting, being, creating, exploring, and caring. Coming together for friendship, worship, play, sports, learning, commerce, protest, governing, mourning, healing, or celebration is fundamental. The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 and 2021 and the protests against endemic racism in 2020 have brought new attention to our desire and need to assemble. Groups suddenly coming together in large numbers can be a source of hope. By asserting that we are still existing and taking up space, assembling is an expressive action and a politically significant event, that can happen wordlessly in the course of any gathering. An assembly is not the act of gathering people. An assembly represents the essence of the people who have gathered and the synthesis of their knowledge and commitments.
#bhmassembly
