A talk with the Founder of the UK’s first magazine for Black children
Serlina Boyd is the founder of Cocoa, the UK’s first Black children’s magazines (Cocoa Girl and Cocoa Boy).
These magazines were driven by a desire to build her then 6-year-old daughter’s confidence after she experienced bullying at school because of the colour of her skin. In 4 weeks, the magazine grew a readership of over 10,000 children! The overwhelming positive feedback and demand for the magazine confirmed the crucial need to build a strong community for young Black girls and boys who are often misrepresented by mainstream media and a desire to educate British communities about Black culture.
Cocoa went on to win the ‘Newcomer Award’ at the Independent Awards 2020 and ‘Launch of the Year’ at the BSME awards. The magazine is now sold globally, and from September will be part of the school Bug Club library, which has an audience of 2.1 million children.
In her talk, Serlina will discuss her 18-year career in the publishing industry, the success of the Cocoa brand and the challenges she has faced as a Black woman in a predominately white industry.
Join us for this inspiring talk, which will be celebrating the achievements of women in conjunction with International Women’s Day.
This event is open to all. Bookings will close 1 hour prior to the start of the event, and registrants will receive a link to join the online event 24hrs before the event, via their provided email address.
Please contact the DMU Events Office on eventsoffice@dmu.ac.uk if you have any questions.