PAST EVENTS
Looking Back
DIWALI Celebration 2022
Nov 27, 2022
WINDRUSH DAY 2022
Jul 02, 2022
WINDRUSH DAY 2019
June 22, 2019
Thank you to those who attended and made the event the success that it was. NWAMI believes that it is important that we show our support and appreciation for those who are part of the 'Windrush Generation' and for the contribution that they have made to our society.
Jim was able to speak to those attending about Windrush and the effect of the event, and those events that follow and how they impacted on those that travelled to this country.
Here he is pictured giving his talk and engaging with those who attended.
We were also fortunate to have the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner Ann Griffith attend the event to speak with the
public and discuss any concerns and issues they may have.
We are very grateful to Ann's for her continued support!
The Event involved a creative opportunity to build and decorate a ship with words of support and hope attached to commemorate those of the Windrush Generation.
Thank you again to all who took part!
For more photos from the event please see are Facebook page!
GET CREATIVE FESTIVAL 2019
May 18, 2019
On Saturday the 18th of May, NWAMI was able to take part in celebrating the get creative festival of 2019. This festival took place on the week of the 11th to the 19th of May. The week is all about celebrating and encouraging have-a-go creativity, through pop up events all over the UK throughout the week. Take a look at the Get Creative map to see what else was going on https://getcreativeuk.com/!
Our project was themed around Word Exchange, involving members of the public coming to create a display consisting of decorative "Word Art" to encourage and support multicultural integration through language.
NWAMI hopes to encourage and foster an appreciation of each other's language and one another's linguistic background within Colwyn Bay.
To help support this, participants were invited to share their favourite words, or words that are particularly importance to them in any language they chose and create a 3D model of either the word its self, or a representation of the model.
The words and models were created through a variety of easily accessible arts and crafts materials such as card, tissue paper, glue sticks newspaper's etc. These were then made into flowers which were arranged in a display to be kept at the Centre for Cultural Engagement.
We hope that this display will continue to grow as more and more participants add to the display and help it to flourish!
DIWALI CELEBRATIONS 2018
November 10, 2018
On the 10th of November the North Wales Association held an event in the Town Hall of Colwyn bay to celebrate Diwali, the Hindu festival of light for the residents of Colwyn bay and North Wales. There were acts from all over the globe coming to showcase their talents through the medium of song, dance, musical instruments and poetry readings. These varied from modern music written by students of Bangor University and other bands to Classical Indian music played on the Cello by Anup Biswas.
It was agreed by all that the event went incredibly well. We had a fantastic turn out from the local community of Colwyn Bay. Residents came in celebratory clothing with their own instruments and talents to perform. It was really great to see the community coming together and celebrating together. There were also performances by Kajal Sharma to explain the original meaning of Diwali though Indian Classical Dance by herself and her students. There was also the opportunity for those who had come to join in the celebrations to have a go and the dancing themselves, which was clearly enjoyed by all.
Before the festivities of the event began, there was an opportunity for residents to speak to the deputy chief commissioner regarding Colwyn bay. The floor was opened for some fantastic discussion about what could be done in Colwyn Bay and in North Wales to help support integration within the community. There was a lot of discussion about the issue surrounding hate crime, the current climate that we are in and how we can all come together to help over come this.
The evening was finished off by a lively procession walking from the Town Hall of
Colwyn Bay down to Queens Garden. We heard that the residents thoroughly enjoyed walking behind the brilliant band Bloco Swn. As we walked down we were joined by others members of the public who were drawn in by the music of the drums who took part in the dancing and celebrations and engaged in lighting Candles and Lanterns. Many came up and said how much fun they were having and how much they had enjoyed the event. It really was brilliant! Everyone who attended enjoyed the Music, the atmosphere and the chance to come together as a community.
INTERNATIONAL INTEGRATION DAY 2018
October 09, 2018
On the 9th of October 2018 the Networking for World Awareness of Multicultural Integration launched the annual celebration of International integration day through our event 'Integration through Learning and Cultural Exchange'.Â
NWAMI is fully committed to building a cohesive and integrated society. We believe that through raising awareness of the true diversity of cultures across the globe, we can build a respectful and tolerant society. Through raising awareness and the education of the community, we can work to build a world where everyone is valued and celebrated equally.Â
Therefore, on the 9th October at The Temple of Peace King Edward the VII Avenue Cardiff, NWAMI, together with Ms Maria Doublesin, an Academic from Malta officially, launched the annual celebration of International Integration Day.Â
The day also included Guest of Honour Julie James AM, Chief Whip and Leader of the House of the National Assembly for Wales.
We are aiming to make this an annual event, celebrating international integration day to showcase the wide breadth of diversity in our country.
ENCOMPASSING WORLD CULTURE
2013
he Networking for World Awareness of Multicultural Integration have always been and always will be in full support of opportunities which provide a community cohesion and education for the public to encourage cultural exchange and celebration. NWAMI met with Directors, Volunteers, Bangor University staff members met with Vice Chancellor John Hughes.
In 2013, NWAMI worked with Bangor City Council and Bangor University to organize "Encompassing World Culture" to promote community cohesion and social integration. This event was partly designed to help connect the University with the community. It is often felt that the university and the city are two separate entities, however, this does not need to be the case. The university is working to build the relationship with the city and to show that we can work together.Â
The Event was funded by the Bangor City Council, Gwynedd County Council and Arts Council Wales. The event focused on heritage and history and was a high profile day-long event.Â
The day began with a grand procession led by Rt Hon David Jones MP and many other distinguished guests. This included the North Wales Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner, a delegation from Keele University, the Welsh Government and local dignitaries.Â
The Programme for the day included dance workshops, a writing workshop and an academic seminar on Community Cohesion through Cultural Exchanges.
Finally, the day was finished with a grand concert featuring Welsh, Chinese and Indian folk dances, Persian lute players, Welsh Singers Dance from around the world and Theatre company 'Ballet Nimba'.
In order to promote cultural and inter-faith exchange there were numerous stall which provided the opportunity for guests to try their hands and crafts and activities from around the Globe.
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INTER-CULTURE 2014
2014
This Inter-Culture event filled the heart of Colwyn bay with the sound of music from all over the world. It provided an opportunity to showcase the incredible talent of these performers. It brought the community out in full to come together and celebrate the diversity we have around us.
Along with promoting music and celebration through tradition, it also promoted a more serious message. NWAMI believes in promoting and supporting Community Cohesion and a true cultural exchange throughout the globe through education and building awareness. Part of the day involved running an Interfaith Seminar, where the members of the community could come together and have an open dialogue to discuss different cultures, different faiths and celebrate one another.
Since this event we have hosted and celebrated INTER-CULTURE every year, and we hope to be able to continue this tradition!
WALTER TULL #NOBARRIERS
2018
Supported by Big Ideas and the Remembering Together project which is funded by the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) with an additional National Lottery grant from the Big Lottery Fund. To find out more visit their website www.big-ideas.org
With this year marking the centennial celebration of the end of the 1st World War, it is only apt that we look at the lives of those who served in the war and those who made a difference to our lives today. One of those such people, and the focus of the workshops held by the Networking for World Awareness of Multicultural Integration (NWAMI) is Walter Tull.
WHO WAS HE?
Walter Tull was the third British Black Footballer to reach professional level of playing. After making a career for himself and becoming well known for his skills as a footballer he went on to join the army shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. After serving for three years and reaching the rank of Lance Corporal, he was commissioned in 1917 to the position of 2nd Lieutenant. This had been not allowed before now for any British Soldier of non-pure European heritage to become a commissioned officer.
The basis studying the life of Walter Tull is to look at the barriers and the prejudice that he may have faced as a man of colour in the early 1900’s during both his football career and his career in the Army. From the age of eight, Walter and his brother Edward lived in Bonner Road Children’s home after both their parents passed away. It was 1908 he began to show promise as a footballer, and by 1911 he had made his name within Northampton Town F.C. Then in 1914 the war broke out, and he joined the army with other members from his football team. In 1917 he was commissioned as 2nt Lieutenant, and sadly he was killed during the second battle of the Somme in 1918.
He has brought light to issues that faced those who come from diverse backgrounds who served our country in the war, and the issues faced by those attempting to build careers in fields such as football. There is evidence to show that during his career as a footballer he faced adversity and abuse from some of his fans, despite him being an impressive footballer. It raises the question of 'Have we become more tolerant?', 'Has this improved?'.
During his time serving in the British Army, and through his hard work and a demonstration of his skills he become commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in 1917. This was a huge achievement as at the time, The Manual of Military Law stated that only men of 'pure European descent' could be commissioned as officers.
We held several workshops with groups from around the country to look at the life of Walter Tull, what he managed to achieve, and what difficulties he may have faced in order to raise awareness. This enabled an open discussion surrounding what barriers we face in our own lives today, and how we can go about supporting one another to promote equality and tolerance. #NoBarriers #Tull100
WINDRUSH DAY 2021
Commonwealth and the Windrush: Positive Outcome
June 19, 2021
Although celebrating Windrush day this year was a little bit different due to the covid-19 pandemic. The NWAMI team came up with creative ways to make it work. We couldn't miss such an important event.
Therefore, this year we had a hybrid event, one in our office in Colwyn Bay, but also ran alongside a zoom online meeting. We also held the event on 2 different dates, with 2 different speakers.
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In the first event, we had Dr. Marian Gwyn deliver an important presentation about the history of the Windrush and the Commonwealth. You can find her presentation here. In the second event, we had a wonderful speaker from Sir Lanka, Muheed Jeeran, deliver an important talk about the commonwealth from his perspective as a commonwealth citizen. You can find his talk here.
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Thank you again to all who took part!