Jason Jackson was elected as the Mayor of Islington London Borough Council, becoming the first Nigerian-born and the first Black person to hold the office since the borough’s establishment in 1900.
Jackson, who previously served as a councillor and committee chair, takes on the mayoral role after a steady rise through local government.
His election marks a significant milestone for both the Nigerian community in the United Kingdom and the borough’s history.
To commemorate the achievement, Nigerian UK-based multi-award-winning artist Adaeze Adinnu unveiled a new painting of Mayor Jackson.
Adinnu, known for her symbolic and culturally rooted works, described the image as “the rise of the phoenix.”
Adinnu has gained recognition in Nigeria and the UK art scene for celebrating African excellence and highlighting moments of Black achievement through her craft.
Her painting of Jackson, she told The African Dream’s Abu Bakarr Jalloh, reflects resilience and renewal, representing a broader story of Africans and people of African descent breaking barriers in leadership.
“The phoenix is a legendary bird that rises anew from its ashes. It embodies the struggle and triumph of Black people across the world — and that’s what Mayor Jackson has shown us,” said Adaeze Adinnu.
Adaeze said her painting of “the phoenix” reflects not only Jackson’s personal rise to becoming Mayor of Islington, but also the collective journey of Nigerians, Africans, and the entire Black diaspora toward leadership and recognition in global spaces.
