Parliament and World War One: Black Poppies

Stephen Bourne will discuss an often forgotten aspect of WW1. The black community in Britain made a telling and significant contribution to the First World War, in addition to 15,600 Caribbean men from the British Empire who formed the British West Indies Regiment.
 
With first-hand accounts and rare photographs, Stephen will guide you through the military and civilian wartime experiences of Black men and women in Britain, from the trenches to the music halls. Figures explored include the professional footballer Walter Tull and singer Mabel Mercer. The issue of the anti-black ‘race riots’ of 1919 in Britain’s seaports will also be exposed, which resulted in the murder of a WW1 merchant seaman in Liverpool.
 
Stephen Bourne is a Historian of Black British Heritage. Stephen’s first book, Aunt Esther’s Story, published 25 years ago in October 1991 shared the memories of growing up in London with his adopted Aunt Esther, a Black Londoner born before the First World War.  Since then Stephen has written a number of successful Black British history books including The Motherland Calls – Britain’s black servicemen and women 1939-45. More information about  Stephen can be found at: www.stephenbourne.co.uk
 
The event will be hosted by Lord Ouseley the former chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality and founder of the Kick It Out campaign to tackle racism in football. There will be an opportunity to ask questions after the talk.
 
This event is free of charge.