Claudia Jones Memorial Talk

Claudia's life is an inspiration. Born in Trinidad in 1915, she and family moved to the US when she was 8. There, they suffered unremitting hardship and prejudice, an experience which led her to the Communist Party, at the time the only organisation to give a strong voice to those fighting for Black civil rights. A talented journalist and good speaker, she rose rapidly in the Party's ranks but inevitably fell foul of the McCarthyite witch-hunts which imprisoned her on false charges and then deported her to Britain in 1955.

Undaunted, Claudia became a prominent figure in Black Britain. She founded the West Indian Gazette and the first Black beauty pageant here. After the 1958 Notting Hill Riots, she was instrumental in establishing the Notting Hill Carnival. Despite her poor health (much of it caused by her grim US days) she remained an activist to the very end. She died in 1964 and her ashes were buried next to Karl Marx's grave. S. I. Martin (Steve) is himself a great speaker and his illustrated talk will look at the life and legacy of Claudia Jones and her lasting impact on publishing, politics, fashion and culture. Steve is a journalist, researcher and writer on Black history. His works include Britain's Slave Trade, the novel Incomparable World as well as a wonderful children's book, Jupiter Williams, about an African boy in 1800 London.