Black History Month is intended to be a moment of celebration and reflection of the important contributions that countless individuals have made to making Britain a more habitable place.
We celebrate Olaudah Equiano’s prominent role in the abolitionist movement, Paul Stephenson’s Bus Boycott successfully challenging the Bristol Omnibus Company’s refusal to hire black drivers, and Claudia Jones’s founding of the Caribbean Carnival in Britain to heal racial tensions.
Yet, appraising the hard-thought gains we have made as a society necessarily means acknowledging the uncomfortable truth of how far we still must go.
This year Britain has witnessed some of the worst racist violence in over a generation
This year’s Black History celebration is taking place amidst the backdrop of some of the worst racist violence on British streets in over a generation.
In August, organised groups of fascists and racists rioted through towns and cities across Britain, setting fire to asylum seeker accommodation, vandalising mosques, and assaulting black and brown people who happened to be in their path.
Furthermore, the far-right Reform UK party won 5 seats at the 4 July 2024 General Election, coming second in a further 98 seats, by peddling a campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric.
At the same time, Tommy Robinson, aka Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is seeking to re-establish an Islamophobic street movement in Britain. He held two sizable demonstrations in Central London over the summer and has another one planned for this coming Saturday on 26 October.
Love Music Hate Racism campaign members at Notting Carnival. Image credit: Daniaal Khalid.
Musicians have always been part of the antiracist and antifascist tradition
The twin threats from the far-right, at the ballot box and on the streets, are a warning to all who want to defend a multicultural society where diversity is valued, and people can be free to be who they want to be.
But if we are to use Black History Month to reflect, then we can take some solace from the fact that whenever racism has spiked in Britain, there has been resistance to it.
The Battle of Cable Street in 1936 and the Battle of Lewisham in 1977 are two clear examples of Britain’s migrant communities and sections of the left uniting together on the streets in opposition to the threat of fascists.
Musicians have always been a part of the antiracist and antifascist tradition. As Blackman notes in Babylon’s Burning, the Musicians’ Union was ground-breaking in its response to racism. As early as 1947, the MU passed a motion opposing the colour bar in Britain and separately was one of the early organisations demanding a boycott of Apartheid South Africa.
Similarly, in the 1970s, Rock Against Racism and the Notting Hill Carnival were political and cultural movements centred around music, which provided a potent challenge to an insurgent far-right threat and police and state.
Join the Love Music Hate Racism campaign by getting involved in shows, events and demos
But what is to be done today? If last summer’s riots underlined the rifts in British society, music is uniquely capable of beginning to mend those divisions.
The MU represents 35,000 members across the UK, all with networks and platforms to be ambassadors for a positive antiracist message. MU members can use their creativity and talent to challenge the far-right’s dead-end politics of racial hatred and reaction.
In August, Love Music Hate Racism issued a call-out for musicians to be a part of unity gigs in areas affected by racist violence. Since then, more than a dozen shows have taken place or are scheduled to take place under the heading of ‘One Beat Many Sounds’.
Upcoming Love Music Hate Racism shows across the UK. Image credit: Love Music Hate Racism.
It is worth repeating that call out to members of the MU. You can join us by initiating more Love Music Hate Racism shows, performing at pre-existing events, promoting the campaign through your existing events and workspaces and turning out to challenge the far-right at counter-demonstrations, such as on Saturday 26 October in Central London.
The onus is on us to reject the racist politics of the far-right
In the mid-1970s, Love Music Hate Racism’s predecessor, Rock Against Racism, created a mood of hope amidst a climate of disillusionment and brought black and white bands together onstage in a defiant political statement.
The onus is on a new generation to garner an atmosphere that engenders confidence to reject the racist politics of the far-right.
This Black History Month, we should celebrate those who, in their own way, stood up to be counted when confronted with racism. We can take strength from their efforts in our struggles today.