Windrush Years Task 4

Half a million people from the West Indies were brought over to the UK to mainly help with the economy and soldiers to fight within the second world war. Jamaica was one of them many countries that was colonised by Britain. Jamaicans were taught to respect England, they were eager to protect their motherland within the war. The West Indian soldiers were made very welcome by the British.
Many West Indians became popular musicians and singers during the war. The British people no longer wanted the black British within the UK; they did not understand why they had not returned to their 'home' after the war. Many black people returned, although some stayed in Britain.

The West Indians believed that they had built up a relationship with the British, but this was wrong. Black people were shocked with the cockney accents of the working class British people, as well as how dull Britain was. A slogan was made to make the Blacks feel un-wanted, 'Keep Britain White'.
Black people were discriminated further when trying to find homes, as many white men did not want black people to rent rooms in their houses; which then resulted in the black people being homeless and having to end up living on the streets.
The Notting Hill riots then started which became so uncontrollable for the police, as petrol bombs were used as ammunition to start fires on the black people.

White people still wanted black people to go back to their own country, therefore began to also start carrying chains and knives to threaten them with. The black people started to then protect themselves, which began leading into head to head violent confrontations with the white people.
Britain then announced that it wanted to become multi-cultural, to bring people of all ethnicity's together. A new wave of parties came in the 1960's with Blau's house parties for Black people. These were parties in which people felt safe, but also cool. Music such as 'ska' came into Britain from Jamaica which and became huge as many people enjoyed it and still do today; Caribbean music also began to hit many of the British club scenes also.

A wealthy white woman had relationships with West Indian men which caused many problems for black people within the media, which caused another negative outlook on black people, as it shone them in a sleazy light. Black people wanted to fit into the community, but white people did not want them in their Churches on Sundays as they were seen as 'breaking the white community'. Black people then rebelled against these people by creating their own Churches, in which they could pray and worship God with their families in a safe, homely environment, in which everyone was equal.

In 1964Martin Luther King then appeared and became an inspiration. Black people then decided to fight back which lead to Labour creating a race legislation.

Michael X caused controversy as many radical black people and even liberal white people began supporting him. Michael X was donated money from celebrities to support his cause however, he murdered two people which lead to him being hung.

The black children of the first generation that had come to England had began their own clubs within the community halls to feel safe. Celebrities like Micheal Jackson, Bruce Lee, and Mohammed Ali became very famous and skin heads wanted action on this. Within the education system the black children suffered further discrimination as many were removed from mainstream classes and put into lower sets, as white people did not believe they were as intellectually inclined as them.