NGOMA BISHOP
Poet • Author • Activist
Ngoma Bishop is a prominent and respected poet, author and social activist whose work spans literature, community arts and heritage. His published work includes Spread Your Wings and Fly and The Whole Story, a collection of poetry and prose produced with Jamaican dialect poet OmaRa.
Through decades of activism and cultural organising in Hackney, he has used literature and the arts to champion Black voices and African and Caribbean heritage, helping preserve the borough’s rich cultural history and create space for community voices.
Why Hackney Matters
Hackney has been central to Ngoma Bishop’s work, connecting his creative practice with the borough’s rich history of Black and African-Caribbean heritage. Through his work as a founder of the Black and Ethnic Minority Arts Network (BEMA), he helped campaign to retain C. L. R. James’s name for the Dalston library, recognising the importance of preserving Hackney’s literary and cultural history for future generations. His work through House of AMAU, alongside his writing workshops and community events, including the 2026 Hackney Writers’ Festival, continues to create spaces where African and Caribbean histories, creativity and voices can be shared and celebrated.
Did You Know?
Ngoma Bishop’s activism is closely connected to Hackney’s history of community campaigning. In 1983, he joined the Roach Family Support Committee, supporting the campaign for a public inquiry into Colin Roach’s death at Stoke Newington Police Station. His involvement reflects the role of Hackney’s Black communities in documenting their own histories and challenging narratives that excluded their experiences.