On the 3rd of October,
Baroness Floella Benjamin gave a speech to the University of Exeter
African-Caribbean Society and other interested members of the university at
Newman Purple in the Peter Chalk Centre. The Baroness with her vibrant
personality and style of speaking had the audience hanging on to her every word.
The speech revolved around her experience as a first generation immigrant to Britain
as a young girl from Trinidad and Tobago, the recurring themes in the speech
were the promotion of multiculturalism and self-love.
It was heart-warming to hear such an
accomplished woman talk on how she had overcome racism as a young child in
England and how she then took it upon herself to break through barriers and
disassemble misconceptions regarding her background. She was quick to say “Be
proud of who you are!”; she emphasised that negative perceptions were only a
problem for those who held such prejudices and were not to impact our
confidence. Instead, she advised that we tackle the negativity with positivity
and smiles.
She was very interactive; telling
audience members how beautiful and special she thought everyone was. It seemed
for her it was necessary that we always be able to look in the mirror and say
‘I AM SOMEBODY.’ This confidence according to the Baroness came from a genuine
belief in oneself and abilities and did not need materialism to fuel it.
Halfway through her speech she
made an appeal for us to inspire the younger generation by striving to effect
positive change in areas we were most passionate about. One of the questions I
had to ask was how she felt being an inspiration to so many. Her surprising
response was that she did not think about it, and just lived every day being herself.
Creating change requires 3 C’s consideration, contentment and confidence (all
wrapped up in the 4th C of courage).
She believed that these were the foundations of an influential person.
This is not the first time she
has taken the time to speak to the society and will not be the last hopefully.
Reason being that, in my opinion everyone who passes through the doors of the University
of Exeter stands to benefit from her wise words and warmth. The baroness brought her audience to laughter
many times and wrapped up her hour-long inspirational talk with a song, which
roused a standing ovation, a fitting end to an outstanding afternoon.
