As Black History Month continues to go from strength-to-strength – well after the October month - people are invited to join M-Shed for a ‘Bristol Bus Boycott Walk’ and ‘Sheroes of the Bristol Bus Boycott’ a powerful afternoon of film and live interviews uncovering the overlooked stories of women who helped shape the civil rights movement in Britain.
A powerful afternoon uncovering the overlooked stories of women who helped shape the civil rights movement in Britain. Taking place at M Shed in the city, on 22 November 2022, ‘Sheroes of the Bristol Bus Boycott’ offers a chance to honour their legacy and be inspired by their courage, activism, and pursuit of justice.
They will be screening the short film produced by Unite South West, spotlighting the female pioneers of the 1963 Bristol Bus Boycott—voices that have too often been left out of the historical narrative. ‘Sheroes of the Bristol Bus Boycott’ was created to mark the 61st anniversary of the boycott, during a commemorative event held at Tony Benn House in Bristol.
For the ‘Bristol Bus Boycott Walk’, this will take you past historic sites in the city, pivotal in the civil rights movement which paved the way for the Race Relations Act in the 1960s. Featuring Sheroes including Tina Johnson-Martin, Joyce Morris-Wisdom and Evadney ‘Cherry’ Hartley, their courage and activism helped shape a pivotal moment in the fight for racial equality in the UK.
Following the film will be a live discussion featuring the afore-mentioned Johnson-Martin and Morris-Wisdom, who will be in conversation with Julz Davis, Chief Disruptor at Curiosity Un(Ltd). Together, they’ll explore their personal experiences, the legacy of the boycott, and the ongoing importance of amplifying underrepresented voices in history.
The talk marks the 60th anniversary of the Race Relations Act 1965, which came into force on December 8th of that year. Tickets are available on the Bristol Museums website – with tickets available anytime through the Go Jauntly App.
Further Bristol Black History Month Resource Packs 2025 include:
- Bristol's Black History: learn more about Black history in this city, with stories compiled by the Bristol Museums Black History Steering Group.
- Black Bristol: a project by young people from Off The Record to show young black people the history of the city they live in and how this city has been shaped by black people across time and space.
- Bristol and the Transatlatic Traffic in Ensalved Africans - Bristol Museums Collections: updated and improved collection of resources and information about the transatlantic traffic in enslaved Africans and Bristol's involvement.
- Bristol and Transatlantic Slavery. Origins, impact and legacy: A textbook for secondary schools.
A totally free exhibition at Bristol Bus Boycott X., you are invited to a bold, immersive pop-up Xhibition marking 60 years of the Race Relations Act 1965.
Here you can step into a living tribute to resistance and legacy, honouring the local heroes and sheroes who helped shape history. Displays include a Paul Stephenson tribute, Designs4Change artwork, Photography by Karl Ritchie, Postcards and the new Boycott Tapestry.
Free to enter, the family-friendly exhibition also provides full accessibility, including wheelchair access, alt text, with design throughout. You can catch the Xhibition at these Bristol venues during Black History Month:
Now on until 9 November: Sparks Bristol, BS1 3DS
11 November: Wills Memorial Building, BS8 1RJ
22 November: M Shed, BS1 4RNt.
Together Bristol Museums and Bristol History teachers have supplemented the existing curriculum about Bristol's links to slavery. This so that schoolchildren in Bristol have a better chance of fully understanding this part of Bristol's story.
