2.8 Wilson and Race Relations

Question 1

Who was Home Secretary between 1965 and 1967?

Answer 1

Jenkins

Question 2

What was the 1965 Race Relations Act?

Answer 2

Made it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of race in public places

Question 3

Which two new bodies were set up as a result of the 1965 Race Relations Act?

Answer 3

Race Relations Board

National Committee for Commonwealth Immigrants

Question 4

Why were people disappointed with the 1965 Race Relations Act?

Answer 4

It lacked strength.

A Conservative amendment made discrimination in public places a ‘civil misdemeanour’ rather than a criminal offence

Question 5

What key areas did the 1965 Race Relations Act not include?

Answer 5

Employment and housing

Question 6

Who led the Community Relations Act in 1965?

Answer 6

Frank Cousin (he left after 2 years)

Question 7

Who did tensions grow between in Kenya in th 1960s?

Answer 7

African majority and Asian minority

Question 8

Who did the British government offer British passports to in 1963?

Answer 8

Kenyan Asians

Question 9

Between December 1967 and February 1968, how many Kenyan Asians entered Britain

Answer 9

7,000

Question 10

Who was unhappy that the government were helping Kenyan Asians?

Answer 10

Right-wingers like Duncan Sandys and Enoch Powell.

Heath warned of ‘serious social consequences’

Question 11

When was the Commonwealth Immigrant Bill introduced?

Answer 11

1968 - under Wilson

Question 12

What was the Commonwealth Immigrant Bill?

Answer 12

Only passport holders with ‘substantial connections’ within Britain by virtue of their birth, their father’s or grandfather’s, could enter

Question 13

Entry of East African holders of British passports would be reduced under a voucher scheme to what number?

Answer 13

6-7,000

Question 14

Why was Callaghan denounced?

Answer 14

The Bill was reactionary

Question 15

What gave the government respite from criticism over the Commonwealth Immigrants Bill?

Answer 15

Enoch Powell’s racial campaign

Question 16

What does Morgan argue about the Commonwealth Immigrants Bill?

Answer 16

Race entered British politics at centre stage

Question 17

What happened in places like Bradford and Luton?

Answer 17

P***-bashing (racially motivated attacks)

Question 18

What did the Race Relations Board and the National Committee for Commonwealth Immigrants commission?

Answer 18

A Political and Economic Planning Report

Question 19

What did the Political and Economic Planning (PEP) report argue

Answer 19

‘Discrimination against coloured members of the population operates in many fields not covered by the existing legislation and that it operates on a substantial scale’

Question 20

How did PEP carry out its investigation?

Answer 20

Questionnaires, interviews, and situation tests

Question 21

What happened in these investigatory PEP situation tests?

Answer 21

Multiple people applying for the same job and the same flat but with names that were clearly white British, West Indian and Hungarian.

The West Indian applicant was nearly always treated unfairly, then the Hungarian applicant and the white British applicant fared the best.

Question 22

What was discovered about race and mortgage rates?

Answer 22

Non-white citizens were liable to be charged higher mortgage rates

Question 23

What did the 1968 Race Relations Act outlaw?

Answer 23

Discrimination in housing, employment, the provision of goods and services, in trade unions and in advertising.

Question 24

What was the problem with the 1968 Race Relations Act?

Answer 24

Like before, it lacked strength

Question 25

During the first year of the Act, how many offenders were actually put on trial?

Answer 25

One.

Question 26

What group made a brief appearance in 1964-5?

Answer 26

A British version of the KKK

Question 27

Workers at both Paddington and St Pancras dealt with what (even by 1966)?

Answer 27

The colour bar

Question 28

The Conservative candidate for Ssmethwick had a 7.2% swing towards him in 1964. What slogan did some of his supporters use?

Answer 28

‘If you want a n***** for your neighbour, vote Labour’

He refused to condemn this.

Question 29

When was the Racial Preservation Society set up?

Answer 29

1965

Question 30

What did the Racial Preservation Society do?

Answer 30

Promoting racial purity

Question 31

When were the National Front set up?

Answer 31

1967

Question 32

What did the National Front put at the heart of their ideas?

Answer 32

Immigration

Question 33

What speech was given by Enoch Powell in 1968?

Answer 33

Rivers of Blood

Question 34

What analogy did the Rivers of Blood speech use?

Answer 34

The River Tiber overflowing with blood

Question 35

When was the Yorkshire Campaign to Stop Immigration set up?

Answer 35

1970 in Bradford

Question 36

What did the TV show, Til Death Do Us Part, highlight?

Answer 36

It was a working class Tory from London’s East End emphasisng love of monarchy and fear of black people.