Will drags his mate Surinder to the Sandwell Archives keen to find out more about Malcolm X, the internationally important black activist, who visited Smethwick in 1965.
During the performance they not only explore Malcolm’s brief but symbolic presence in town, but much more about the district. They also get hands-on experience of how to use a local archive to explore the history of the place they live in.
How d’you know that? is a play to introduce older secondary students and the community to the workings of their local Archives. It was performed by a professional cast in the Sandwell Archives Search Room from October 8th – 19th 2012, as part of Black History Month. It was also professionally filmed – the film was premièred on 7th March 2013.