Rhoda Akindele

I’m a budding digital archivist and have explored this through founding Akín Akin Archive - a project that preserves and celebrates the histories of the global West African diaspora. Beginning with West African communities in Britain, the archive explores stories country by country, uncovering overlooked narratives through interviews, photography, and film to preserve heritage for generations to come. It all began when I started exploring my family’s VHS home videos and sharing snippets online. I started the archive because I felt that West African presence in the UK is heavily undocumented, despite historical records showing West Africans in Britain as early as the late 1400s. Even in more recent history, I rarely see representation in archives or easily accessible materials about West African presence in the UK during the 1950s - 1990s (a period that isn’t far removed from my own living reality). By starting with my family’s collection and sharing my findings online, many people have commented that they finally feel seen. I’ve received private messages from people describing me as a “cultural custodian” and a “historian,” which showed me how strongly this work resonates with those who feel historically underrepresented. Alongside this, I attended a short course in London called Undocumented, which explores archival theory and decolonial approaches to archiving for Black Londoners. As a Pan-Africanist, I’m particularly interested in expanding Akín Akin Archive through more decolonial methods. Through my studies, I’ve been thinking about how oral traditions, dance, and song are also forms of archiving, and how these practices can help document the cultures and histories of West Africa and its global diaspora.

Follow Rhoda Akindele’s work:

Instagram: @fr33domisnofear and @akinakinarchive