00:08The red carpet has been rolled out in Gravesend, with models taken to the catwalk to show off
00:13the latest fashion as a way of celebrating Black History Month this October.
00:18As you can see, the fashion show is still going on behind me and they're now walking
00:22down in pairs with the aim to just showcase African culture, African history, namely Nigerian
00:28culture and art and history and patterns to celebrate Black History Month.
00:34And for one artist, the aim of the event was to show the culture behind the country in
00:40a way that he believed would also educate others.
00:43People are scared of what they don't know.
00:45So we have to enlighten, educate.
00:47For me as an artist, my job is not just to create beautiful artwork, it's to educate people.
00:52I am an educator.
00:53We can't just tell the story of Black History Month without experiencing or giving people
00:58the ideal experience and having people have a taste of what it really feels.
01:03The materials, colours, even the style of the outfits highlight a different part of Nigerian
01:08culture, with some of the outfits representing authority and other outfits representing the
01:13different cities within the country.
01:15And for some of the models, this was their first time walking down the red carpet and it
01:20was their way of showing pride in their country.
01:22I love this one.
01:24This is really good.
01:25Because it's like my culture.
01:27I'm expressing myself, where I'm from, so it feels really great, honestly.
01:32Even to be a representative of my culture, it feels amazing to me.
01:36I feel like I'm the chosen one at this point.
01:38I felt quite connected to what my ancestors were doing.
01:42I felt really proud of myself as well.
01:44Really felt nice embracing my culture.
01:46Our culture has gone through so much.
01:47I don't think we should have a dedicated month just to appreciate people's culture.
01:51That should be something we should do on the daily, every second of the day.
01:55I would love to celebrate my culture and I would like to show how important it is to
02:00my family and me.
02:01Some people might be naive and they might not know what the culture is.
02:05They might think it's like what it was back then, but like now, when you learn about it,
02:10you realise how beautiful it is.
02:11I feel very proud.
02:12Abuluri says each year he'll focus on a different African country for Black History Month,
02:18sharing the fashion, the food and the culture.
02:20But for this year, all eyes are on Nigeria.
02:23Nayla Mahamid for KMTV in Gravesend.
