race and immigration Flashcards
what Union caused the passing of 2 laws in 1920-25 against migrant workers?
how did they achieve this?
National Union of Seamen
demanded that white sailors could superseed blakc sailors - take their jobs.
1919 - liverpool white workers strike against working with black men
what was the Alien Orders Act?
1920
* all migrant workers have to reguster with the police before seeking work
* many balck and Asian british citizens were also targeted as they were assumed to be migrants
* all pople of colour put under suspicion
what was the Sepcial Restrictions Act?
1925
* forced coloured seamne to prove their citizenship
* assumed that all coloured people were not British
how were Blakc and Asian people discriminated against 1918-39?
- 1919 balck chefs paid £15 less than white
- League of Coloured People - 80% of coloured people were unemployed for a prolonged period of time
- local police collaborated with white workers to force balck sailors out of their jobs
examples of anti-racist groups in the 20s?
- communist party of great britian
- international african service bureau
what was the battle of cable street?
clash of British Union of Facists with ethnic minorities and the Communist Party of Great Britain
1936
* attempt to incite anti-semetic ideology and violence in Lonadons East End
* CPGB redirected its own protests to stop the facists
* series of fights broke out forcng the BUF to abandon the march
how were colonial students treated in british education?
- recieved good educaton
- expected to return to colonies to serve the empire
- not expected to stay in britian - those who did refused employment
who was Harold Moody ?
what did he set up?
british qualified doctor that was repeatedly refused employment in hospitals
League of Coloured People 1931
* expose colour bar and white ignorance
* equal access to healthcare
* equal access to educational facilities
how did migrants support the war effort (WW2)?
- offered steady pay and prestige
- Indina Army 2 million men - largest multi-ethnic volunteer force
- crucial to the war effort
- resources and manpower
how was the war administration racist?
how long did this last?
- encouraged white australians rather than black carribeans
- refused carribean shipping company offer to send 2,000 jamacian workers to britian
- west indian soliders saw themselves as marginalised
mostly disappeared as the war went on but
* black people promotions rare
* intermarrying greatly discouraged
how did the arrival of the American Army effect racism in the uk?
- US army segregated
- attempted to enforced segregation on broths forces - prevent balck american mixing with balck british
- Learie Constantine - refused accomdation as americans didnt want to use hoteks that served Black people
what changing attitudes/opportunities were exposed after the war?
- all ex-servicement offerd education and training
- British state publically rejecxted racist discrimination (not criminalised)
- Constanties legal victory against Imperial Hotel
- Black Britions same rights as white
how was the labour shortage post war dealt with?
- British Nationality Act 1948 - legal right for colonies to entre uk
- Windrush 1948 - mass migration from jamica
how much did migration increase from 1939-59?
caribbean - 164,400
India/pankistan - 452,700
how did immigrants find economic opportunities in the 50s?
- nightclubs and reggae music - Wilbert Augustus Campbell
- post office
- railways
- NHS
how did both Labour and Conservative governments feel about the rising immigration of the 50s?
greatly discouraged it
* pressure on comonwealth countries to restrict availability of passports
* discussed liimits on coloured immigration however feared damaging interantional reputation
how did white Britons react to rising immigration post war?
what was governments reaction?
- letters to MPs complainign about ethnic: jobs wealfare benifits and house ownership
- no comlaints about other whit immigrants only coloured
Lord Sailsbury - to counter discrimination would make more immgrants want to move to Britian, therfore should have no reaction to racism.
examples of white violence?
- interracial relationships - coloured man often beaten by white men
- immigrants targeted as representative of those who rejected british rule (loss of colonies)
- blamed for socail and economic problems
what was the Notting Hill Riots?
1958
* armed white mobs attacvked the residents of Notting Hill
* shouting racist slogans
* police did little to stop the attacks
how did the Labour and Conservative parties utilise immigration to gain popularity?
- promise laws of restricting immigration
- minority appealed to popular racism
what was the commonwealth imiigration act?
1962
* designed to end large-scale immigration
* allowed families to be reunited
* alowed specifically skilled workers or already hired foreigners to immigrate
what was the commonwealth immigration act?
1968
* children denied entry if only 1 parent in britain
* over 17 denied
* had to prove a relation ot a briton
what was the immigration act ?
1971
* partial : grandparents or parents are british - no restrictions
* non-partial : foreign grandparents / parents - strict control on immigration
what were the consequences of the immigration acts of the 60s?
increase of mass migration
* many moved before the act
* those palnning to leave now stayed
* allowed families to be renited
* work vouchers allowed immigrants to come and work
what caused the radicalisation of immigrant rights groups in the 60s-70s?
- conservative agggression towards immigrants “if you want a (N) for a neighbour vote labour”
- Labour despite previous support became more aggressive towards immigration mid-60s
- black radicals rejected mainstream politics
examples of the British Balck Panther Party and the Race Today Collective pushing back against institutional racism
- 1971 - acknoledgemnet that the met is racist
- 1974 imperial typewriter strikes - forced white unions to support asian workers
what were the 3 race relations acts introduced by labour?
1965,1968,1971
* banned racial discrimination in poublic sphere
* promotion of racial hate an offense
* illegal to refuse housing based on race
* illegal to refuse public services based on race
how did the race relations backfire?
- many Black activist were arrested for insciting violene under the acts
- Roy Sawh most arrests under the 1965 act
what was the “rivers of Blood” speech ?
consequences?
Enoch Powell 1968
* coloured people ahd more rights than white under new rce relations laws
* multi-culturalism would encourage segregation and violence
* advocated for re-emigration - government should fund this
- refelcted the widespread view of white popel against coloured people
- 74% of Britians agreed
an example of the policy of dispersal in the 60s-70s?
- local government policies were that black people could not make up more than 30% of a school population.
- london students were bussed to other school districts
- ongoing desire for racial assmiliation.
