A statue of the nursing heroine Mary Seacole has been unveiled in London. It is the first statue of a black woman in the UK.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1 How high is the statue?
2 What is Mary Seacole an example of?
3 Where was Mary Seacole born?
4 Who was treated in her clinic?
5 What contribution have black people made to Britian?
An 8-foot tribute to a woman who made a towering contribution to public life. Her medical bag over her shoulder and marching onto the battlefields of the Crimean war. This was a day of pride for those who spent 12 years campaigning for Mary Seacole to be honoured.
This is an incredible woman who is a role model to us all, because we all have to face adversity, we all have to face obstacles, but when you’re determined you do know you can break down those barriers and that's what she showed.
What an amazing, amazing woman. I mean, her story is incredible, and what she had to overcome, the obstacles she had to come... overcome just a… just a ... by her trade she had to do what she had to do.
For decades after her death, Mary Seacole story was overlooked but now a painting of her hangs in the National Gallery and the Jamaican-born nurse who used her own money for a clinic to treat wounded soldiers is a statutory part of the national curriculum. The statue is on the same site as the school founded by the other great nursing heroin, Florence Nightingale. Despite critics trying to compare the women, supporters say there is room for both.
Why can't we leave the space for two great women. One was white, the other was black, and we need to acknowledge that black people have made a contribution to the wealth and health of this country for generations and at this time, let's celebrate our inclusivity let's stop being nimbies and come together and say they were both wonderful.
For Mary Seacole, recognition at last as one of the heroines of Crimea.
Key:
1 eight foot
2 fighting adversity / facing obstacles / breaking down barriers
3 in Jamaica
4 wounded soldiers
5 to the wealth and health of this country
