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Black History Month (Forward - Autumn 2025)
Black History Month takes place in October, but SIA member Ifeanyi Nwokoro asks – to be effective, shouldn’t conversations about race be ongoing rather than once a year?
Ifeanyi Nwokoro is used to capturing attention. He works in disability awareness and whether it’s through his beautiful blog posts or punchy videos, he’s someone who’s comfortable talking in public and with using his platform to raise awareness about life after a spinal cord injury.
This Black History Month, Ifeanyi (Ify) welcomes the movement and opportunities for discussion around race and disability that it brings however he feels these are conversations that should be ongoing, not once a year.
“Awareness events are important,” he says, “Too many voices aren’t heard enough because they don’t have a platform. But it should be a platform to build more from. Where I’ve been disappointed is when it just feels like that’s a box ticked – a little tokenistic. On top of what people might learn from Black History Month, we need to listen to what people are saying, work out what needs to be changed, implemented or improved on and then keep those conversations going. We need to use it as a chance to look back on what we’ve done since the last time and how we can improve things moving forward.”
Ify, 35, from Middlesbrough, is mindful of those who might shy away from the limelight but whose experiences, opinions and suggestions can make a huge difference. For him, Black History Month is a vehicle to help elevate those voices.
He adds: “Although I have a fully-fledged experience of disability as a person of colour, mine is a drop in the ocean compared to what other experiences there are out there.”
There are people like me out there who have valid things to say so we have to make it easier for those voices to be heard.
“Personally, I’d like to see more training around skin integrity for people of colour. When I walk into a medical appointment, I still sometimes find the difference in how my skin issues might present differently due to its colour haven’t been taken into account, even though they’ve read my medical history.”
A lot of the issues I’ve had with my skin are because the awareness isn’t there and that needs to change.”
Ify has been a disability advocate most of his working life and has the tenacity and passion to show for it. He was injured at C4 level in a car accident in April 2010, aged 20, and returned to his studies at Teesside University, the very same day he was discharged from James Cook University Hospital (South Tees Hospital) Spinal Injury Centre after a six month stay.
After graduating with a master’s in business management however, he didn’t go down the traditional job route, instead finding purpose and meaning through awareness raising work. He was invited to universities, giving talks to students on health care and social work courses on what it’s like to live with a spinal cord injury. He also volunteered in his local hospital, speaking to newly injured patients about rebuilding a life after SCI.
This work suited him, not only did he find it therapeutic, but his experiences prompted the beginning of his blog journey which later become the foundation for his career. He went on to do public speaking, make video content and to contribute to policy and practice as part of a team at Social Work England.
Getting to talk about and share his experiences allowed Ify to come to terms with disability in a way he hadn’t been able to when he was newly injured.
“I wasn’t very good at dealing with the challenges. I probably made things worse by not talking about things or bottling things up – it’s part of the reason I talk so much about it now,” he admits.
“I found out quickly that there were a lot of things I wouldn’t be able to reengage with. A few times I had tried things again, then got confirmation it was off the table – it was a bitter pill to swallow so I avoided things. I’d always loved animation and drawing. I knew mouth drawing was an option but didn’t try it until four years ago. I was happy discovering I still have the eye for it and did a couple of drawings but never got back into it. I adapted, getting enjoyment from animation in a different way – through watching movies!”
Like many newly injured people, Ify found things chaotic in the aftermath of spinal cord injury as he worked to establish a ‘new normal’. Finding stability in his care routine is one of the aspects that’s been pivotal in helping him regain confidence and to help rebuild his life.
“There’s no script or template for finding a solution with a disability. Lack of control can be debilitating and there are always obstacles to overcome.
“For the first three years after my injury, I was with care agencies. I had no clue what care was supposed to look like or what I should expect. The team at hospital had encouraged me to take an active part in my own care, but once I left hospital, I let the agency shape what my life would look like which ended up being very restrictive. I started rebuilding a structure from scratch once I began taking control of my care and had good carers.
“I’m in a good stable situation now. Good carers have enabled me to try new things – and to travel! I’ve been to Spain, the Canary Islands, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Argentina. Now, when I’m trying to recruit, I’ve got a standard – I know exactly the kind of people I need to help keep me stable.”
Visit Ify’s website here: mylifeinachair.com
This article was featured in the Autumn 2025 issue of FORWARD, the only magazine dedicated to the spinal cord injury community.