Mulberry celebrates Somali Heritage Week

Tower Hamlets is home to a vibrant Somali community. Somalia and Somaliland have a rich heritage of musical, literary, dramatic, performance, dance and visual arts. 

During the 14th – 18th of June, more than 700 students celebrated the diversity of this rich culture. They attended 20 additional enrichment opportunities, including lectures by academics, food tasting, historical archiving, poetry, film, and creative activities led by Numbi Arts and the new Somali Museum UK. 

Mulberry alumni Layla Ishmail chaired four lectures featuring Dr Peter Chonka (Kings College London); Professor Kaltun Fadal and Professor Kavita Datta (Queen Mary University of London); Professor Anya Ahmed (Manchester Metropolitan University), Mary Harper, (BBC journalist and author) and a panel of 6 outstanding and successful Somali women. They all spoke on a range of fascinating and powerful themes.