Black Voices In Conversation - Marcia Reid Fotheringham: New Yorker to Cumbria's High Sheriff
"I grew up with the notion that I needed to be proud of who I am": Watch the interview with Marcia Reid Fotheringham above
Black Voices In Conversation is a new series of interviews by ITV News to mark Black History Month 2020 .
Across the country we've spoken to groundbreaking individuals from the black community to learn about their life experiences and to hear their vision for the future.
Lydia Hamilton-Morl from ITV Border sat down with Marcia Reid Fotheringham - one of Cumbria's most influential black women.
Marcia was born in London to Jamaican parents, who were part of the Windrush Generation. She spent most of her life in New York, living through a very significant time for black history. She said: "Most people my age ask me if I had experiences of being a hippy. My answer is always the same - I was too busy being black.
"I grew up with the notion that I needed to be proud of who I am, and, even though there was an awful lot of turmoil, I needed to learn how to stand firm. And I did."
At the age of 43, Marcia moved from the American metropolis to a small village in Cumbria and in 2019 she was sworn in as the county's first black high sheriff and only the third in the UK. The role dates back a thousand years and is the oldest royal appointment.
Marcia is now one of 37 Deputy Lieutenants for Cumbria, a magistrate, a patron of many organisations, as well as running a dental practice with her husband. Marcia has been widely recognised for her influence in the county, not only for her time as high sheriff, but in society.
Watch more interviews from our Black Voices in Conversation series here - or listen below: