Black History Month, celebrated in October in the UK, is a celebration of the history and culture of black people throughout the UK. In the city of Leeds, there was a series of excellent promotions, organised locally and I was very privileged to attend one of the hottest-ticket events.

Caryl Phillips, the St. Kitts born author who is also a son of Leeds, was the guest speaker in a public question and answer session at a smart venue in the city. Caryl Phillips’ thought provoking work often focuses on the themes of displacement, belonging and the integration of Caribbean and British life; you can see that the Caribbean is never far from his thoughts when he is writing.

He was born in St. Kitts on 13th March 1958 and departed with his family to live in Leeds at a young age. He was educated at the Central High School and later read English at Queens College, Oxford University. He is currently a Professor of English at Yale University in the United States, and lives in New York. He readily admits that the fascination of the Caribbean and migration to and from this area has never left him. Many of his novels, plays and essays focus on the effects of the Atlantic slave trade, carried forward generations to the present day, and the ramifications of losing, and finding, one’s identity.

Caryl began his part of the programme by reading from his latest work “Foreigners: Three English Lives.” He followed this excerpt with a differently paced piece, explaining with a smile that journalists often ask him personal questions when a new book is released and that this piece was written to explain a little of his background.

Following the readings, Caryl relaxed on stage, thoughtfully answering questions prepared by an interviewer. During the wide-ranging series of questions, he told us about his life-long love of reading, his knowledge of literature and his passion for football, specifically the Leeds United football team. He took delight in exclaiming “They are undefeated in the League right now, you know.”

Caryl recalled with fondness his Kittitian roots and told us a gentle and moving story. He explained that as each of his books was published he would make sure that a copy was sent to his great-grandmother in St. Kitts. On his next visit to the island he sat chatting to her and eventually asked, “What did you think of my books?” She reached under her chair and pulled out packages that had been opened and carefully resealed, with the books still in pristine condition inside. His great-grandmother looked away and began to talk about her youth and Caryl realised that she was talking about a time 80 years before. As his great grandmother continued to talk softly about the tasks she was expected to undertake as a child and how sometimes she had to miss school, Caryl suddenly realised his mistake. This elderly lady could not read. Caryl explained to the audience his distress at his own insensitivity, not because she couldn’t read, but because he had unwittingly embarrassed his beloved great-grandmother.

Early in the interview Caryl explained that he studied English because “I wanted to understand people”. He achieved his aim; his depth of understanding of the human condition is extensive and humbling.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 15th, 2008 at 11:38 pm and is filed under music & arts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.