Serendipity Remembers: 18 March 2026
Stella Dadzie The National Black Women’s Conference was a national gathering that brought Black women across Britain together to collectively organise, share experiences and articulate shared political, social and feminist […]
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Stella Dadzie
The National Black Women’s Conference was a national gathering that brought Black women across Britain together to collectively organise, share experiences and articulate shared political, social and feminist demands. Serendipity Remembers Stella Dadzie, who played a pivotal role in organising the first ever National Black Women’s Conference on 18 March 1979.
Stella Dadzie is a historian, educator and Black feminist thinker whose work transformed how Black British history is written and taught. Growing up in post-war Britain, she became acutely aware of how Black women’s lives were systematically excluded from historical narratives.
In 1978, Dadzie co-founded the Organisation of Women of African and Asian Descent (OWAAD) along with Olive Morris; another influential architect of Black British feminist politics.
The first issue of FOWAAD, the newsletter of OWAAD, which was published following the first National Black Women’s Conference and effectively used to report on the conference, calls to it readers: “OWAAD IS ALL OF US! FOWAAD BELONGS TO ALL OF US! MAKE IT YOUR MOUTHPIECE, SISTERS!”
Dadzie’s book, The Heart of the Race (1985), foregrounded Black women as political actors, workers, mothers and intellectuals. She dedicated the book to Olive Morris, following her death in 1979, and within it, discussed the history of Caribbean immigration to the UK, with a specific focus on the experiences of Black British women.
The Heart of the Race’s contribution to the amplification of Black women’s involvement in anti-racist work and the role of Black British women in the post-war economy, including the development of the NHS, afforded the book the Martin Luther King Memorial Prize in 1985.
Recently, her writing has been published by Lawrence and Wishart in October 2025, with works ranging from personal to political and creative writings. Stella Dadzie’s career demonstrated her deeply-held commitment to social justice, education and the amplification of the voices institutionally ignored in the UK. Her work and existence stand as a guide and inspiration to younger generations in the pursuit of equality and justice.
Stella Dadzie is a speaker for the Black Heritage Voices 2026 conference. This year’s theme is Mapping Creole Worlds, Diasporic Futures and the Stories Britain Forgot, which centres creole identities, hidden heritage and the after lives of empire – the stories that shaped Britain yet remain marginal, obscured, or selectively omitted from the national record. By mapping creole worlds and the complex cultural exchanges that define African and Caribbean Diasporic experience, the conference interrogates how contemporary Britain continues to negotiate visibility, belonging and power.
The £120 early bird price is available until 30 June. Book now at: www.serendipity-uk.com/event/black-heritage-voices-2026/
Image: Spread of the magazine FOWAAD displayed at the Feminist Library
Source: The Feminist Library
Licence: CC BY 4.0
Changes: Background removed, placed on a background of a brick wall and vignette added.
Link to Licence: Deed – Attribution 4.0 International – Creative Commons
