Chelsea Kwakye (Author) Chelsea Kwakye is a first-class honours History graduate from Homerton College, Cambridge. Whilst at Cambridge she was the only black girl in her year group of around 200 to read History. In her final year, she was Vice-President of the African-Caribbean Society and competed in a Cambridge vs. Oxford Varsity Athletics match. She is currently studying at the University of Law in preparation for a training contract with a city law firm in London. Ore Ogunbiyi (Author) Ore Ogunbiyi is a Nigerian-British Politics and International Relations graduate from Jesus College, Cambridge. Whilst at Cambridge she pioneered the Benin Bronze Repatriation campaign, the #BlackMenofCambridgeUniversity campaign and was President of the African-Caribbean Society. She has since completed a Masters in Journalism at Columbia University, New York and is currently working as a Special Assistant and Speechwriter to the Vice President of Nigeria.
A hugely important tool that I wish I'd had to guide me through university. Taking Up Space is a shocking account of how racism operates in the academy from a student viewpoint. An essential contribution. Intimate... like reading the diary of a well-informed friend. The result is a bold venture... full of what will be revelations to some and reminders to others. The authors dignify the argument with nuance, and puncture the tendency to see black students as a monolith... For countless black women in Britain, a century after women's suffrage and in spite of the Race Relations Act, it can feel like the glass ceiling is reinforced by concrete, with those above unable to see below. And self-help, it seems, remains essential. * TLS * Brilliant... Full of the knowledge, understanding, tools and kindness that every black girl needs.