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How Brick Lane fought back against racism [1]

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Date: 2022-07 

On 4 May 1978, Altab Ali, a young Bengali garment worker, was killed in a racist attack in Whitechapel, east London.

His murder wasn’t an isolated incident, but it sparked an uprising. East London’s Bengali community, sick of the racist abuse they faced on a daily basis – including attacks from the fascist National Front – came out in protest.

On 14 May, 7,000 Bengalis marched from Brick Lane, in the heart of the community, to Hyde Park. They demanded an end to racist violence and discrimination. Led by young people, it was part of a fightback that helped turn the tide against far-right politics in the UK.

Today, a new exhibition traces the history of the movement using contemporary images by the photographer Paul Trevor, and the oral testimonies of people involved.

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Two participants in the project told openDemocracy about their memories of the uprising – and what it means to them today.

Rajonuddin Jalal, former youth activist

In east London in the mid-1970s, it felt like the whole Bengali community was under attack.

People felt unsafe in their own homes. Supported by the National Front, racist thugs were openly campaigning against our presence. I myself was attacked at a funfair, and had to be taken to hospital. I was only a teenager at the time.

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[1] Url: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/brick-lane-racism-altab-ali-turning-point/

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