The previously untold stories of people from the Windrush generation who came to live in Bradford have been revealed in a new exhibition.
Funded by the British Library and managed by Nigel Guy, Director of Windrush Generations, in partnership with Bradford Museums and Galleries Service, the Windrush Stories project involved three young people from the district, of African and Caribbean heritage, interviewing more than 20 older people about coming to Bradford.
Three young people interviewed elders in Bradford (Image: Submitted)
Now their stories are shared in an exhibition at Cartwright Hall, which has opened to coincide with Black History Month.
The ‘Windrush Generation’ came to the UK between 1948 and 1971, when the government was keen for more workers to help rebuild the country and revive the post-war economy. Many early arrivals were from the Caribbean, labeled the “Windrush Generation” in reference to the MV Empire Windrush cruise line, which brought people from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and other islands in 1948.
The Bradford Project aims to increase understanding of the experiences of this generation and celebrate the contributions they have made to the district. Participants shared memories of growing up in the Caribbean and stories of life in the UK. Asked if she had any advice for young black people today, Cynthia Rowe, 88, said, “Don’t give up” — the inspiration for the exhibit’s title.
Cricket and music fan Winston Williams, 74, known locally as Jah Man The Reverend, came from Jamaica in 1965. He worked spinning wool in a mill in Thornton Road, then trained as a mechanic and engineer in International Harvesters, before a music shop opened on Lumb Lane. He said: “I’m a Bradfordian. My postcode has always been BD8. The old people are leaving, now it’s time for the new generation.”
Windrush Stories is at Cartwright Hall until February (Image: Mike Simmonds, Newsquest)
Ernest Bailey, 88, came from Jamaica in 1955. He recalls Churchill going to Jamaica in the early 50s and looking for new workers. Despite being a skilled tailor, he worked as a laborer in a chemical works on Canal Road, before moving into engineering, working on machinery and making jet engine blades. His advice to young people is: “Work hard, learn as much as you can, get a good education. Be aware of how things work, make sure you are capable.”
Young interviewer Grace Flerin said: “We need to explore the life of our community, helping people tell their story. What a powerful method oral history has been to help create a record of their lives in their own words.”
The exhibition explores the experiences of people who came to live in Bradford (Image: Mike Simmonds, Newsquest)
Olivia Guy said: “This project has had a lasting effect on the way I reflect and think about the sacrifices and contributions made over the years, along with giving the UK a dedicated workforce.”
Added Alexandra Enyouri: “We have used our new skills to capture these untold achievements of the Windrush generation and their successors, to provide a platform of recognition that they rightly deserve.”
Launching Windrush Stories this week (Image: Mike Simmonds, Newsquest)
Commenting on Bradford’s Windrush Stories project, Bishop Dr Desmond Jaddoo said: “Being a bishop and an activist for equality and social justice has taught me that the importance of the community is to know their journey. Public exhibitions and archives such as the Windrush Stories Project are essential to help educate not only our community but wider communities about the fact that the Windrush Generation were not immigrants, they were British citizens and the journey they made was to rebuilt their mother. country and despite the hostilities they faced from time to time, the contributions made are immeasurable.”
Bishop Desmond Jaddoo at the launch of the exhibition (Image: Mike Simmonds, Newsquest)
Nigel Guy said: “As a descendant of the Windrush Generation it has been an honor and privilege to accept and archive these personal stories of the changing early life environments of our local Windrush pioneers in the Caribbean about the challenges they faced and the lasting contributions they made have. made in UK. We are standing on their shoulders!”.
* Don’t Give Up is at Cartwright Hall until 5 February 2023.
