Racism in Britain and the Bus Boycott in Bristol

Bristol’s racial history is not bound to the history of transatlantic enslavement, though this is of great importance (see blog: Bristol’s history of transatlantic enslavement). In fact, Anthony Richmond has noted that ‘Despite the early association of Bristol with the slave trade, there is no evidence of a coloured immigrant population before the Second World War.’ [See reference no.1] In this entry I want to explore some aspects of Britain's racial history, focusing specifically on the post-war period and how this unfolded in the city of Bristol.

Immigration became a focus of political discourse in the post-war years and it was very much intertwined with ideas surrounding race. In 1948, the government passed the British Nationality Act which ‘distinguished between citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies and citizens of Commonwealth countries but laid down that both categories had the status of British subject.’ [ref no.2] Under the act citizens from the Commonwealth had the right to enter, settle and work in Britain. Subsequently, particularly due to the demand for labour to aid the reconstruction of the economy following the Second World War, a large influx of immigrants entered the UK from the West Indies.

However, John Solomos explains that as soon as they began to arrive they were considered a problem. The immigration of ‘coloured’ workers, even though they were deemed British subjects, became a concern for many in Britain. There was an increasingly racialised debate about their residence in the UK, which focused predominantly on ‘the supposed social problems of having too many black immigrants and the question of how they could be stopped from entering’ despite their status under the British Nationality Act (1948). [ref no.3]

Andrew Pilkington, in his book ‘Racial Disadvantage and Ethnic Diversity in Britain’, discusses two historical concepts which seek to explain why minority ethnic groups faced such a negative reception on their arrival in Britain. The first framework (the immigrant-host framework) suggests it was because immigrants were relatively new to British society: they were considered as outsiders and struggled to conform to societal norms. The second (the imperialism-racism framework) reveals it was because of the outward appearance of ethnic minorities compared to the native White population (basically the colour of their skin), which comes from a long history of British imperialism and superiority. His book, which I would highly recommend, proceeds to analyse empirical data to explore how ethnic minorities experienced racism in practice – concluding they were discriminated against in several aspects of life, including employment, housing and commercial services. [ref no.4]

Clearly racial prejudices were also institutional, confirmed by the passage of the 1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act: ‘the first legislative measure to control the immigration of overseas citizens of the United Kingdom and its colonies.’ [ref no.5] This act, alongside latter acts (1968 Commonwealth Act, 1971 Immigration Act, 1981 Nationality Act), was effectively designed to restrict the entry of Black and Asian people from entering Britain.

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“The colour problem in Britain is not becoming easier: it is becoming ever more serious. Every so often it bursts out or boils over. This is what is happening now over the Bristol bus boycott.”

‘Industrial Colour Bar’, Tuesday 7th May 1963, published in London by The Times [ref no.6]

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Throughout this whole period Black Britons suffered constant racial discrimination, which brings me to the 1963 Bristol Bus Boycott. This is a great example of Bristol placing itself at the heart of Britain’s anti-racism issues. Against the backdrop of the US Civil Rights movement, and arguably inspired by the Montgomery bus boycott (1955), on April 30th 1963 a group of local West Indian activists began their campaign against Bristol Omnibus Company’s long standing colour bar against Black bus crew members. [ref no.7] It is important to note that the colour bar was completely legal. Paul Stephenson, Bristol’s first Black youth officer, was at the forefront of the campaign, alongside other key figures like Henry Owen, Roy Hackett, Audley Evans and Prince Brown. The campaign was successful as the colour bar was lifted four months later. The 1963 Bristol Bus Boycott has been regarded as an important watershed in the development of ensuing race-relations legislation. It is seen to have been incredibly influential in the UK’s first ever Race Relations Act in 1965, which prohibited racial discrimination in public spaces. [see ref 7 for in-depth history of Bristol Bus Boycott]

Bristol has an established tradition of Black activism and resistance, most notably the bus boycott (1963), the St Pauls disturbance (1980), a second conflict in St Pauls (1987), and of course, the removal of the statue of Edward Colston (2020). The Bristol Bus Boycott was the first major instance of social justice campaigning in the city, and it certainly wasn’t the last. As briefly mentioned in my post, ‘The politics of protest’, Bristol continues to position itself in the centre of popular protest today as ‘Kill the Bill’ demonstrators resist the government’s new Police and Crime Bill. This entry doesn’t have the scope to go into utmost depth on the topics at hand, but hopefully it has shed light on some important points regarding race in the post-war period and how this unfolded in Bristol. In essence, racism was rife. The Bristol Bus Boycott, in my opinion, can be regarded as a microcosm for the anger felt by Black communities in Britain’s wider society.

Some questions to think about:

• Do you think that the Bristol bus boycott (1963) laid a foundation for other instances of popular protest in the city?

• Does the boycott help us to better understand the events that transpired in St Pauls less than 20 years later?

• Why is it, do you think, that Bristol has such an established tradition of Black activism/social justice campaigning?

Feedback always welcome! Comment what you think below, or head over to the padlet to share your ideas!

For a list of the literature included in this post, please look here under the title, ‘Racism in Britain and the Bus Boycott in Bristol.’