Boris Johnson, the mayor of London, will cut funds for Black History Month. Ed West, The Daily Telegraph columnist, agrees. Black History month in the UK is held in October.He feels that Boris Johnson is right to cut funds for Black History Month, an event that, according to West, "provokes contempt and racism".
West: “BHM not only doesn’t bring people together, whatever local politicians have to say – it provokes contempt and racism, since any “achievement” that has to be promoted by taxpayer-funded propaganda is psychologically put into the junk folder by most intelligent people. Which is a shame, because African, Caribbean and black American history is interesting and significant enough without Haringey council’s help.”
Figures seen by the Guardian show that the London mayor cut funding for Black History Month, a series of events staged in October to celebrate black culture in the capital, from £132,000 to £10,000, though city hall insists the previous figure was £76,000. Africa Day’s £100,000 grant from the London Development Agency was axed completely and a decision to cut funding for the St Patrick’s Day celebration was roundly criticised last year.
The previous mayor of London Ken Livingstone, who supported multicultural events throughout his mayoralty, described the decision to cut funds for Black History Month as “outrageous”. “These were all events that helped bring London together,” he said.
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