Black History Month: Share the Mic – what you need to know

Inspired by the success of the US’s #ShareTheMicNow campaign back in June, director of publishing at British Vogue, Vanessa Kingori, and chair of the British Fashion Council, Stephanie Phair, have launched a UK equivalent to coincide with Black History Month. The #ShareTheMic campaign sees 70 black female professionals take over the Instagram accounts of 70 prominent white women – with a combined Instagram following of 175 million – to raise awareness of black voices, stories and the experience of being a black woman in the UK today.

Each account will be taken over for one day of the campaign. Among the exciting collaborations are: Booker Prize-winning author Bernardine Evaristo with foreign correspondent Christiane Amanpour; Don’t Touch My Hair author Emma Dabiri with actor-cum-Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow; entrepreneur Sharmadean Reid with makeup empire founder Charlotte Tilbury; broadcaster June Sarpong with fashion designer and ex-Spice Girl Victoria Beckham; and journalist Kenya Hunt with designer, influencer and TV personality Alexa Chung.

As well as amplifying the voices of its black participants and raising awareness of the racial injustices still so prevalent in society, the campaign is rooted in a desire to shine a light on what can be achieved when women work together and form positive professional relationships with one another. Through leading by example, Kingori, Phair and the figures taking part in #ShareTheMic hope to inspire others to put women’s relationships first and promote anti-racism across different industries.

In a statement about the campaign, Phair said: ‘Women are powerful. Women working together are irrepressible. Storytelling, sharing opportunities and creating personal relationships will be a powerful tool as we work towards a better future.’

For more on the #ShareTheMic campaign, click here.