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Update: Following information from our supporters, we're now aware that there are also non-BME candidates competing for the Brent Central seat.

To my knowledge there have only been two other occasions in British political history when, by default, not design, a local party has selected a predominantly Black list. The first time was also the Brent Central seat, which the young Paul Boateng won back in the 80’s and then more recently when Rushnara Ali was selected priory to the 2010 General elections.

Beginning its race to space, India launched its first spacecraft to Mars on Tuesday from the country’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said its goals for the Mars Orbiter Mission are to showcase India’s technological advancements and also to gather information about the distant planet.

With so many hip-hop artists at best avoiding the topic of gay rights, or worst still attacking gays and lesbians in their songs, one rapper easily stands out for his outspoken approval of the issue. The rapper Macklemore climbed over the taboo subject and the music charts this year with “Same Love”, a song in support of legalizing gay marriage.

The Metropolitan Black Police Association made a historic decision last week by appointing the first woman to its chair since its formation in 1994. Janet Hills persevered through obstacles before rising up to her current position and is delighted to be leading the association.

In an interview with The Voice, Hills said:

Up until now, it has been a boys' club. Having a woman as MetBPA chair represents a change of mindset. I think as a woman, I can have a wider viewpoint and a more inclusive outlook."

The famed “festival of lights” illuminated Britain’s vibrant diversity with the largest celebrations outside of India held across the country.

For the first time in over 40 years, the Hindu, Sikh, and Jain festival coincided with Bonfire Night, rivalling the infamous fire holiday with its own bright lights.

One week before the five day festival, Trafalgar Square filled with colourful music and dance for a five-hour revelry supported by the Mayor of London, and on Sunday 3 Nov, cities across Britain exploded with light.

Sharon White, current Director General of Public Spending, has been appointed Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, the first woman and Black person to occupy the post.

Named by the Treasury as the “overwhelmingly best candidate for the job”, White is a seasoned and versatile civil servant with over 20 years experience in government public spending, welfare reform, and international development.

In a speech to mark the 50th anniversary of the assassination of JF Kennedy, David Miliband gave an impassioned lecture at the British Museum last night entitled, “America, Britain & Europe: Lessons from JFK”.

The depiction of a racially charged trial that gripped the American public eighty years ago arrived in London last month.

In her first major article,  OBV’s Nilay Tuncok investigates European control of Africa of the past and present. First the shocking 1884 Berlin Conference in which a small number of European countries ‘scrambled’  to claim ownership of 90% of the continent. Tuncok  also comments on today’s discussion of that event, some 130 years later, which still focuses not on Africa or its people but Europe's winners and losers.

The Lewisham Emergency BME Forum and the Light of the World FC (for Communities) are hosting their annual Lewisham Black African-Caribbean History and Future Month Celebration on Tuesday, November 5th from 4 to 9pm. It will be a night of motivational speakers, community activists and performers supporting the expansion of opportunities for the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities.

The co-pioneer of the forum, Disciple Samuel Georgewill, is a former shadow volunteer for Councillor Crada Onuegbu and a former councillor for Lewisham Community Safety.