Our Black and Beyond: Celebrating Black excellence campaign aims to showcase the contributions and achievements of our Black staff, students and alumni, featuring profiles of individuals from across our St George’s community. In celebrating excellence, the campaign aims to recognise the wide-ranging contributions these individuals have made in academia or beyond, and the different ways in which these achievements can inspire us.
If you know of a member of our community who you feel should feature as part of the campaign, please do nominate them.
The story of current St George’s student, Tariq Marsh-Henry, is the latest to feature in the campaign. Tariq studied Biomedical Science at Oxford Brookes University and is now in his final year of the Graduate Entry Medicine programme at St George’s.
Inspiring change and empowering communities at St George’s
“I am passionate about the mental liberation of people through the attainment of knowledge. I enjoy being a leader who empowers people, by making them feel heard and understood.”
“I currently mentor a young person who is known to the Youth Justice System, on behalf of an organisation called Wipers CIC, and previously mentored a young black student who was successfully admitted to Oxford University to study Medicine for an organisation called African Caribbean Medical Mentors.
“I have also been a Team Leader for Streetdoctors (North London Team) - a charity that teaches basic first aid to young people in communities affected by knife crime and other violence.
“My work as a Mentor and Team Leader has been underpinned by a deep desire to excel and thrive in environments that, historically, have been unapologetically inaccessible to black people, simply for being black.”
“I have an interest in reading world history, particularly African-Caribbean history. This led me to found a book club in 2021, centred around such history.
“I am also a Communication Skills Peer Tutor Lead at St George’s, another means by which I am able to fulfil my desire to empower others, and have undertaken other roles within the university such as being an Anatomy Demonstrator and a Clinical Skills Peer Tutor.”
“St George’s is the place where I have met my best friend and partner. Without her support, I simply would not be here.”
“I am an aspiring Forensic Pathologist, and have been since around the age of 10 years old.”
“I studied Biomedical Science at Oxford Brookes University. This was a period that initiated the shaping of my current understanding of myself, the type of person I endeavour to be, and the sorts of people I want to surround myself with.
“It is also the place where I met my most treasured friend – now a trainee lawyer – who is British-born, of Nigerian heritage. He was the person with whom I'd spend countless hours in the dead of the night, reflecting on our experiences and exchanging ideas about our understanding of life.”
“After achieving a First-Class Honours from my first degree, I qualified as a registered Biomedical Scientist in Clinical Biochemistry. After almost two years of working in an NHS laboratory, and on the third time applying to study Medicine, I was successful in receiving an offer to study Medicine at St George's. I am now in my final year of study.
“Breaking out of my many comfort zones has been the most significant challenge.”
“Facing challenges on your journey is inevitable, and this becomes more apparent as a maturing adult. You learn that ease and comfort, whilst essential, constitute a fraction of what we know as success.”
“I continuously reflect on my experiences and see challenges as lessons. Breaking out of my comfort zone, whether in the form of directly confronting colleagues or spending close to four hours travelling to and from placement each day, has been the most significant challenge.”
Tariq's journey at St George's
“I entered St George's at an ideal time. Trailblazers such as Malone Mukwende and Dr Khadija Owusu had already brought to light the need for people to question their unconscious biases and the perception of what's around them.”
“This has created a greater willingness for St George's to engage with conversations surrounding the decolonisation of the curriculum. Such conversations have been advocated by staff members who care, notably Margot Turner, a Senior Lecturer in Diversity and Medical Education at St George’s.”
“I have had the pleasure of working with Margot Turner, as part of the Black History Scholars Programme, to deliver a presentation on St George’s specific black history to staff and students based on research carried out with the Archives and Special Collections team at St George’s.”
“My mother, who singlehandedly raised four children whilst working fulltime and running a business, has easily been my greatest role model; even more so today, now that I am an adult.”
When I was a young boy, it appeared easy, the countless commitments that Mum had to attend to for her children. Now I understand the amount of resilience and discipline that was required to do what she has done.”
“If I had to share advice with my younger self, I’d say: ‘Trust in God and the path you desire to be on.’”
“I am motivated by the desire to empower people and enjoy creating safe spaces for people to express themselves, talk out their thoughts, and use such thoughts as a foundation for the achievement of their ambitions. I am also motivated by my experiences and the good people I meet along the way, which serve as a reminder that I am headed in the right direction.”