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Inside Babylon: The Caribbean Disapora in Britain
The varied experience of the Caribbean diaspora in Britain, with its difficult and fractured history, is reflected in this distinctive and lively collection. The contributors to Inside Babylon show how employers and police, psychiatrists and welfare services, help to channel black people into residential and occupational ghettoes.
Clive Harris, Bob Carter and Shirley Joshi analyse the economic destiny of Afro-Caribbeans in Britain. Going beyond the familiar prisms of race relations and reductionist class analysis they illuminate the radicalizing dynamic of British capitalism in the postwar period. Errol Francis provides a shocking account of the experience of black people at the hands of psychiatrists in Britain. Cecil Gutzmore finds the Notting Hill carnival to be a litmus test of racist formations in both the media and the state, as well as evidence of the resilience of the black community. Amina Mama and Claudette Williams explore the position of women in black communities while Gail Lewis focuses on their characteristic patterns of employment. In a powerful concluding essay Winston James charts the unfolding of a new Afro-Caribbean identity in Britain and debunks the notion that racist structures by themselves create a homogeneous black community.
Inside Babylon is a radical and timely indictment which moves beyond over-simplified and misleading stereotypes to identify and explore the impressive struggles of black people of Britain.
Clive Harris, Bob Carter and Shirley Joshi analyse the economic destiny of Afro-Caribbeans in Britain. Going beyond the familiar prisms of race relations and reductionist class analysis they illuminate the radicalizing dynamic of British capitalism in the postwar period. Errol Francis provides a shocking account of the experience of black people at the hands of psychiatrists in Britain. Cecil Gutzmore finds the Notting Hill carnival to be a litmus test of racist formations in both the media and the state, as well as evidence of the resilience of the black community. Amina Mama and Claudette Williams explore the position of women in black communities while Gail Lewis focuses on their characteristic patterns of employment. In a powerful concluding essay Winston James charts the unfolding of a new Afro-Caribbean identity in Britain and debunks the notion that racist structures by themselves create a homogeneous black community.
Inside Babylon is a radical and timely indictment which moves beyond over-simplified and misleading stereotypes to identify and explore the impressive struggles of black people of Britain.
- GenresNonfictionRace
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First published November 17, 1993
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October 22, 2020
Inside Babylon is a series of essays discussing the varied experiences of Caribbean people in Britain. It spans the whole post-war period and explores many of the challenges faced by Caribbean people. It’s one of the most comprehensive books I’ve read concerning the struggles of black communities in Britain.
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The book offers an extensive overview of Britain’s economy and labour market following the Second World War and paints a broad picture of Britain’s social and political landscape before and around 1948, the year hundreds of West Indians first arrived in Essex, London.
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One thing I love about the book is its substantial focus on the experiences of black women. It features eye-opening essays discussing intimate partner violence, black women’s interactions with the police (I found both of these chapters very interesting) community organising against racism and sexism and patterns of employment.
Other sections delve into psychiatric racism, the role of Churchill’s conservative government concerning West Indian immigration, the Indo-Caribbean experience and the early years of Notting Hill Carnival.
Inside Babylon isn’t exclusively focused on the Windrush generation that arrived in Britain in the late 1940s. The book is an honest and in-depth exploration of the struggles of Afro-Caribbean people in Britain. Although it was published in 1993, the struggles it discusses are ongoing and continue to significantly impact black communities today. I learned a lot from this book. It's an important piece of literature concerning our experiences as black British people and black people in Britain.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The book offers an extensive overview of Britain’s economy and labour market following the Second World War and paints a broad picture of Britain’s social and political landscape before and around 1948, the year hundreds of West Indians first arrived in Essex, London.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
One thing I love about the book is its substantial focus on the experiences of black women. It features eye-opening essays discussing intimate partner violence, black women’s interactions with the police (I found both of these chapters very interesting) community organising against racism and sexism and patterns of employment.
Other sections delve into psychiatric racism, the role of Churchill’s conservative government concerning West Indian immigration, the Indo-Caribbean experience and the early years of Notting Hill Carnival.
Inside Babylon isn’t exclusively focused on the Windrush generation that arrived in Britain in the late 1940s. The book is an honest and in-depth exploration of the struggles of Afro-Caribbean people in Britain. Although it was published in 1993, the struggles it discusses are ongoing and continue to significantly impact black communities today. I learned a lot from this book. It's an important piece of literature concerning our experiences as black British people and black people in Britain.
Displaying 1 of 1 review