Bert Williams MBE (Brighton and Hove Black History Project)

Brighton and Hove Black History Project seeks to reveal Brighton and Hove’s hidden past and helps local people get involved in mapping their own history of Brighton and Hove. It aims to show how everyone (both black and white) can learn from each other and become more aware of Brighton and Hove’s cultural heritage and enable Black and minority people to represent their experiences.

Brighton and Hove Black History was formally launched in Brighton in October 2002. The group’s existence owes a lot to the passion of and persistence of Bert Williams MBE, who has spent much of his retired life researching and presenting the multicultural history of the city. The group has now expanded to encompass a thriving team of local volunteers from a variety of cultural backgrounds.

Bert Williams, originally from Jamaica, has lived in Brighton since 1967 and served in the RAF and later as a catering manager for the NHS. After retiring in 1992 he chaired black and mixed parentage family group Mosaic in Brighton before founding the history group. He also organises the Chattri Memorial service on the Sussex Downs, which commemorates Indian soldiers who fought during the First World War.