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              Dutch PM Mark Rutte says that apologies for Dutch history as slave owners and traders are “not wise”

              Rent relief on the way for low-income households

              How to support victims of the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria

              How to support victims of the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria

              Rail strike hits services on Arriva lines

              A bus at a bus station.

              New round of regional transport strike in the North

              The outside of a building by night.

              Pro-Russian hackers claim cyberattack on UMCG

              A woman.

              Groninger photographer Courtney Bonneau launches new exhibition in Lebanon

              The cold of the North is compensated by the warmth of its people – Ocean Grazer engineer

              The cold of the North is compensated by the warmth of its people – Ocean Grazer engineer

              Philips Drachten

              Philips to fire 6,000 staff to cut costs

              First flight from Eelde to Munich

              Eelde Airport secures two new summer routes

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                Groningen welcomes Qatar 2022 with cheer and criticism

                Groningen welcomes Qatar 2022 with cheer and criticism

                The anti Zwarte Piet protest in Emmen

                Emmen: Four people still detained after anti Zwarte Piet protest

                The inside of Forum Groningen

                “Let’s Gro” opens a discussion on the future of Groningen

                What about food in student city Groningen?

                Where to get knockout fries in the northern provinces

                Ukraine Food opens in Groningen

                Ukraine Food opens in Groningen

                Buses will no longer travel through the Grote Markt in Groningen

                Buses will no longer travel through the Grote Markt in Groningen

                “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                Plans for extensive Kardinge residential expansion revealed

                Plans for extensive Kardinge residential expansion revealed

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                  • All
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                  • Typical Dutch
                  International Welcome Centre North

                  International Welcome Centre North

                  A woman.

                  Groninger photographer Courtney Bonneau launches new exhibition in Lebanon

                  Eurosonic Noorderslag

                  Eurosonic Noorderslag

                  Ending the Year with a Bang!

                  Ending the Year with a Bang!

                  It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                  It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                  A devastating defeat; an unexpected victory

                  A devastating defeat; an unexpected victory

                  Sinterklaas is Here!

                  Sinterklaas is Here!

                  A moment from NFF 2021

                  Noordelijk Film Festival 2022 has started

                  “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                  “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

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                    The cold of the North is compensated by the warmth of its people – Ocean Grazer engineer

                    The cold of the North is compensated by the warmth of its people – Ocean Grazer engineer

                    Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

                    Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

                    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                    People protesting on a street in Groningen.

                    Former Sugar Homes residents protest for return of withheld deposit

                    I’m not Black; I’m African

                    I’m not Black; I’m African

                    A letter from the Editor – Internationals from 120 countries: Welcome to Groningen, Leeuwarden, Assen and Emmen!

                    MPs call for cap on foreign student numbers in order to ensure ‘accessibility’

                    Watch: I’m 100% positive about my Groningen internship – Hanze international student

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                      Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

                      Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                      Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                      Small but mighty: TECNED is looking for internationals to help it grow

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                      Talk on International Growth by local founders to take place on the 21st of June

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                      Groningen to host its first sustainable business day

                      Groningen to host its first sustainable business day

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                      Companies in Dutch energy sector seek next cohort of young leaders

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                      From a WhatsApp group to a community: BLOG offers a ready-made social space for Black Ladies in Groningen

                      The Northern Times by The Northern Times
                      January 19, 2021
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                      From a WhatsApp group to a community: BLOG offers a ready-made social space for Black Ladies in Groningen
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                      The Northern Times sat down with the leadership team of the Black Ladies of Groningen, a society founded in 2018 that has grown into an institution giving a space, voice, and place for fun for black women in Groningen. Speaking from across Europe (thanks, Zoom!), we connected with Stacey Lamptey (founder and treasurer), Mwee van der Meer (vice president), Uejaa Tjihumino (events/communications); and Ivie Edebiri (events).

                      By Thomas Ansell

                      The city of Groningen, with its three universities, has a large number of student societies that stretch from places for people to express themselves (think GUTS, the theatre society) to place for people to connect to like-minded people or those with a similar background (think the Association of Latin American Students). Stacey Lamptey, the founder of BLOG, noticed that despite the diversity of societies, nowhere existed specifically for Black Women in Groningen to express themselves, make friends, and find support for their specific new-to-the-city needs.

                      So, Lamptey created a WhatsApp group to provide this space: “adding all of the black ladies in the city”, to begin with, she says. Now in its third year of operations, BLOG has its own board, series of events, and even hit the headlines last year as one of the organising groups behind the Black Lives Matter protest that took place in the city to confront structural and ongoing inequality.

                      But the need for something like BLOG is much more basic than that, says Vice-President Mwee van der Meer: “there’s fewer black people in general in the North, quite shockingly when you first walk through the city”, she says, “so BLOG is a ready-made community that might not obviously exist in Groningen at first glance. Lamptey agrees: “we started really as a safe space, somewhere to help with issues around education and mental health, but also somewhere to just talk or find someone to show you around town.”

                      Membership has grown hugely, but most of this has come through organic growth or via social media. Initially, Lamptey and the other first group of members simply approached people personally but now anyone that wants to get involved as a member, collaborator, or supporter can just send an e-mail or message on Instagram or Facebook.

                      Naturally, as BLOG found its collective feet it met with some difficulties, Lamptey: “even our name got some stick: it’s unapologetic. We don’t see ourselves as ‘just’ being for black women, we want to make a community with support- but one that is open”. To that end, lots of BLOG events are open to everyone, whilst collaborations have been sought with other student societies, local government organisation (like the Night Council), and groups like the Groninger Feminist Network, Women’s March Groningen, and the NonFiction Photo foundation.

                      And, as Van der Meer says, BLOG works for its members: “take for example the Black Lives Matter protest; it sharpened our focus as a group. We’re not overtly political and our members have loads of political views so we take an educational perspective. First we worked to educate ourselves and our members about issues that people might not know about (for example Seasonal Affective Disorder and other mental health issues that tend to affect black women more readily), but also about history and politics.” As events co-ordinator Uejaa Tjihumino says, BLOG still mainly acts as a safe space for its members: “somewhere welcoming, where you can talk about whatever you think is important to you”.

                      As both Tjihumino and Ivie Edebiri work on BLOG’s huge events schedule, it seemed like a good time to ask how the incredibly isolating effects of COVID-19 had affected BLOG. “Everything is online, naturally”, says Edebiri, “and the board is located in several different countries, but luckily our members that are local have all jumped at the chance to help.” Tjihumino says that despite the distance, events have gone on: “we had a series of lower-profile things to help stop boredom like our games night, but also more ‘serious’ things like a series of talks about mental health, and online and live debates and talks. We want to help keep our members connected and entertained, especially if they’re isolating in a student room.”

                      There’s personal support on offer too, says Tjihumino: “we check up on people if they are usually pretty active and then retreat a bit”. Upon entry to the WhatsApp group, says Lamptey, everyone does an introduction and puts in a picture of themselves to everyone has a face associated with them. This helps with welfare, too, she says.

                      And now, the work of the BLOG leadership is even beginning to inspire other groups that have little representation in the North: “we’ve shown how important it is for a support group if you’re in a new place: there’s even a group of BAME men in Groningen that now have a group like ours. We show that there’s always room for people to help”, says Lamptey.

                      It helps, certainly, that BLOG isn’t a monolith: “we have members from all sorts of backgrounds, different religions, different social backgrounds; some people join us whilst in the City on Erasmus and some are members for years”, says Lamptey. But, in the group, respect is the key moniker, says Tjihumino: “people can disagree as much as they like, but there’s no shunning in our group. Some people can’t be themselves around their families so we offer that space for them and it has to be kept open.”

                      Naturally, it would be better if the North were a welcoming and open space for everyone (it is often not for many reasons), so we asked the BLOG team how Groningen, Friesland, and Drenthe might become more friendly and open to Black Women, too. Van der Meer: “it would be great if people stopped making assumptions in general. But added to that people should learn their unconscious biases (and how to unlearn them), that’s at a more internal level but externally there are issues in the job market and access to housing. ‘No Internationals’ housing adverts affects lots of people, not just in our group, and overall it feels like lots of people, companies, and institutions could be more open to criticism.” The RUG too, has some improving to do, say Lamptey: “its systems need re-assessing, for example with regards to diversity in the academic staff. Look at the UMCG, how many black doctors are there? Like the current Diversity Officer at the RUG is a white professor.” “I was the only person of colour in my entire class”, says Edebiri, “and in general it seems like its very difficult for Dutch and International students to make connections with eachother”.

                      If you’d like to get involved in BLOG, check out its Facebook or Instagram pages

                      Images: BLOG members at the large Black Lives Matter protest in Groningen in 2020. Photos by Kayla Fenenga

                      Tags: black ladies of GroningenBLMBLOGcommunitydiscriminationeventsprotestsafe spacesocialstudent societystudents
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                      NorthernTimes.nl is an English-language news site for internationals and anyone interested in news and activities in the three northern Dutch provinces of Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe. The website provides daily coverage and summaries of local news in the north, as well as human interest stories, backgrounds and a regional events calendar. The Northern Times is an initiative of the International Welcome Center North in cooperation with Persbureau Tammeling BV, which owns and operates the website.

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