The arrival of circa 500,000 Caribbean nationals between 1948 and 1971 to Britain is widely known as the Windrush Generation.
The vessel responsible for the transportation of the majority of these Caribbean migrants who hailed from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Lucia, Grenada and Barbados was HMT Empire Windrush.
Dave Hines making a point. Photo courtesy CaribDirect
The question is, why did so many people from this region of the world leave the beautiful weather and pristene beaches to travel to the gray, cold and generally inhospitable United Kingdom? The simple answer was that living conditions were tough with high levels of unemployment and underemployment across the islands which were dependent territories or colonies of Britan.
Multi-talented David Neita offering a provocative poem.Photo courtesy CaribDirect
Additionally, in 1948 the British Nationality Act gave people from colonies the right to live and work in the United Kingdom which was an opportunity many could not resist; more particularly because the British government was desperate to fill vacancies made available from shortages created by casualties of WWI and a declining economy.
Reverend Bazil Meade from London Community Choir speaks of his life experience. Photo courtesy CaribDirect
However, though the government was grateful for the labour gap that was filled, the people of Britain were generally resitant to the type of workers that were invited to build the nation. Caribbean workers who toiled on the buses, trains and at the hospitals were ridiculed, disrespected, cursed and even beaten because of the colour other skin, a situation that was very difficult for many British citizens as most had never seen a Black person before.
Fast forward to 2018, when many of the First Generation Windrush migrants were persecuted through no fault of theirs by being refused re-entry to Britain after travelling abroad because they could not prove they were legitimate residents. This was because the UK Home Office failed, either deliberately or by incompetence to keep records of those granted permission to remain in Britain. What made things worse was that it emerged that in 2010 the Home Office destroyed the landing cards of ALL of the Caribbean migrants that entered Britain up to 1971.
Sculptor Donald Brown shows off a remarkable piece. Photo courtesy CaribDirect
What this meant was that those affected were unable to prove they were in the country legally and were prevented from accessing healthcare, work and housing.
A NEW ERA
2023 marks the 75th anniversary of Windrush and the period is being remembered by Hines Designs Future Group with a number of activities.
In early September 2023 Hines Designs met with a number of British media representatives to outline their strategy for celebrating the contribution and accomplishments of the Windrush Generation at the Woolwich Works under the theme, ’75 Ways To Celebrate Windrush75 In Just One Day!
Attended by a wide cross-section of media including The Voice Newspaper and CaribDirect Multi-Media the event quickly focused on the essence of Windrush with music, poetry and art. Organiser Michelle Hines provided a captivating outline of the rationale for the event by carefully reflecting on the sacrifices of our forebearers and the fact that we enjoy many privileges today because of them. Her passion for community engagement through theatre, live concerts and so on that Black folks should endeavour to experience as a matter of course and not privilege. She is keen to break down the social barriers that prevent Black folks from daring to attend operas, theatre and thinking those places are for the elite. That as a people we have a right to enjoy all of the trappings of British modern society we care to experience.
Ms Hines was supported by Mr Dave Hines, Poet David Neita, sculptor Donald Brown and Reverend Basil Meade.
All are invited to the 75 Ways To Celebrate Windrush75 In Just One Day! on Saturday 14th October 2023 at Woolwich Works. See details in link here:
This cultural community event aims to provide a springboard to promote talent, community groups & small cultural businesses partnering with Hines Designs for Windrush75. Take home a commemorative goodie bag of Windrush 75th Diamond Anniversary memories! This is so much more than just a day – it is a way of life, honouring our Windrush Pioneers & celebrating the lasting impact of Afro-Caribbean culture in Britain. Experience all of this in the iconic space of Woolwich Works “The best new culture spot in London” [Time Out]
D Fitz-Roberts is a multi-talented writer on socio-economic issues having worked in journalism across the Caribbean (Grenada, Guyana and BVI) in the 90s. He has worked in London with Black Britain Online, New Nation Newspaper and Caribbean Times. An academic with a passion for research on distributed ledger technologies in emerging economies he is keen to see the Caribbean embrace bitcoin and blockchain technologies to keep pace with the west. He writes periodically for mainstream publications and is the founder of CaribDirect.com. He is also the author of Caribbean children’s book LifeSucks! available on Amazon.
