Honorary doctorate for ‘Digging Deep’ historian Norma Gregory

London:

Industrial historian Norma Jacqueline Gregory was last month recognised by the University of Nottingham with an honorary doctorate of letters for her significant contributions to knowledge collating and preserving the heritage of former Jamaican mine workers and other ‘hard labour’ industries. Her book, Jamaicans in Nottingham, published in 2015 by Hansib Publications, also helped secure and preserve contemporary Jamaican history in the UK.

She said: “It is my life’s mission to lead education awareness of the significant contribution of former Jamaican industrial workers to the UK economy, in terms of workforce strength, labour, leadership and legacy that should never be erased from history or ‘our story,’ as I call it.

“Former coal miners, steelworkers and other ‘hard labour’ industrial workers, those deceased and those still alive today, need a formal thanksgiving, a permanent mark of remembrance, vital healthcare and adequate pension provision, particularly in this later stage of their lives, to ensure they are adequately cared for and never forgotten.

“I am so humbled to receive the honorary doctorate, but know there is much more to do to improve Jamaican people’s representation in industrial history books and broadcast media. This is the start.”

Dr Gregory, 54, from Nottingham, is of Jamaican descent, and part of the UK Windrush generation that migrated from the Caribbean, post-World War 2, at the request of the British government to help rebuild Britain.

Her father, Donald Gregory, worked in the steel industry for 20 years; her mother, Lena Gregory, worked in the National Health Service for 40 years; and close relative Vernon Gregory worked as a coal miner at Gedling Colliery Nottinghamshire, serving 28 years.

She has also produced an array of innovative, educational resources for schools and teachers and contributes to history television programmes. She also provides museum consultancy around inclusion and diversity. Former High Commissioner Seth George Ramocan visited Gregory’s educational touring exhibition, ‘Digging Deep’, which was hosted at the National Coal Miners Museum in Yorkshire, England, in December 2019.

The exhibition was due to visit Jamaica and other Caribbean nations but was postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic. More information on the exhibition is available at www.blackcoalminers.com.