The Bristol Bus Boycott: a lesson to be retaught?

So we all know Michelle Obama right? Global activist for girls in education? Best selling author? Has a vaguely famous husband…I forget his name. Michelle Obama is an icon of our generation, a role model many of us look up to, a figurehead for the modern, more progressive world. She is also older than it has been illegal to racially discriminate against someone in the UK. Yes, let that sink in.

Do Britons know British history?

“what is astounding is how little we know about the history of race relations in our country.”

Racial tensions have been brought to the forefront of conversation in the last few months following the death of George Floyd in the US and sparking many to fight back against a system that consistently denies them a voice. And whilst this anger was ignited by the situation within the US, it has developed into a global movement, with many countries now exceedingly aware of their own racial issues. 

Yet, what is astounding is how little we know about the history of race relations in our country. Do the names Paul Stephenson, Olive Morris and David Pitt mean anything to you? In an attempt to begin the education and awareness of our forgotten history, let’s cast back to 1963, to an inner suburb of Bristol, St Pauls, to, in my opinion, the biggest turning point in combatting racial discrimination in the UK.

The ‘colour bar’

Bristol, like many UK cities 50 years ago, had widespread discrimination against ‘coloureds’ (a phrase previously used to refer to non-white people) in most aspects of life, such as housing and employment. In the St. Paul’s area in the city, there were around 3000 West Indians, some of whom had served in WW2. In 1955, despite a reported labour shortage on the buses in the area, the Passenger of The General Workers Union (TGWU) passed a resolution that ‘coloured’ workers should not be employed by the Bristol Omnibus Company bus crews, and so any black prospective employees were denied work. This double standard became known as the ‘colour bar’ although local union officials denied its existence. 

The response

“Another key figure was the High Commissioner for Trinidad and Tobago, Learie Constantine”

In response, four men of West Indian heritage, namely Roy Hackett, Owen Henry, Audley Evans and Prince Brown formed an action group, later to be known as the West Indian Development Council. They were helped by Henry’s friend, Paul Stephenson, who was a Black man with a strong London accent, which could be used to deceive employers with racist ideologies. He arranged an interview with the company for Guy Bailey, a young warehouseman and Boy’s Brigade officer, but when it was revealed that Bailey was West Indian, the interview was cancelled. This blatant racial discrimination prompted the group to call for a boycott of the buses in the area, which later became known as the Bristol Bus Boycott. 

The group had an overwhelming amount of support, both from the city’s West Indians and also from the white population, including Bristol University, whose students held a protest march at the bus station and the local Headquarters of TGWU. The movement also made it into the national political discourse with Labour MP Tony Benn and then leader of the Opposition, Harold Wilson, both speaking out in support of the protesters. Another key figure was the High Commissioner for Trinidad and Tobago, Learie Constantine, whose intervention later also proved vital. 

Smith and scapegoats

“Even when faced with large public outcry, the administration was unwilling to make meaningful change”

Significantly however, despite this upheaval of voices, the movement struggled to make any changes, as TGWU still refused to meet a delegation from the West Indian Development Council. Instead, Ron Nethercott, who was the South West Regional Secretary of the union, persuaded a local black member of TGWU, Bill Smith, who had no connections with the protesting men, to sign a statement which called for quiet negotiation to solve the dispute!

The statement also condemned Stephenson, who had quickly become the face of the campaign, claiming he was causing potential harm to the city’s Black and Asian population. Even when faced with large public outcry, the administration was unwilling to make meaningful change, instead, keen to target scapegoats and deflect scrutiny, a precedent to become common in dealings with race relations within the UK (and around the world).

Legal victories

Nethercott then attacked Stephenson in the Daily Herald newspaper, calling him ‘dishonest’ and ‘irresponsible’. In response, Stephenson took the issue to the High Court, with a libel case, which he ultimately won, and received £500 and an apology.

Speaking in an interview in 2018, Stephenson said following the court proceedings, “now it really had taken off cause [it was] unheard of for a Black youth worker [to be] taking newspaper’s into the High Court. They had to now start taking me seriously.”

Yet, despite this turning point in the movement, the activists still continued to face backlash from the establishment. The Bristol Council of Churches released a statement saying “We seriously regret what may prove an extended racial conflict arising from this issue that has apparently been deliberately created by a small group of West Indians professing to be representative.” Whilst this continued to exclude the campaigners from any significant discussion, the involvement of the religious establishment did suggest one thing: the boycott and discourse of the protesters was having a damaging impact on the status quo. The authority was feeling challenged and threatened, and yet rather than attempt to listen and solve the issue, it became defensive and hostile. It’s important, however, to bear in mind that this sort of action within the UK was unprecedented and so having any sort of impact was significant.

The final hurdle

In the end the boycott lasted four months, but the union remained uncooperative for an extended period, even at one point joining forces with the city Labour establishment and the Bishop of Bristol and attempting to work with Bill Smith again, the local Black member of TGWU who had previously been persuaded to sign the statement condemning Stephenson. Learie Constatine, the High Commissioner for Trinidad and Tobago continued his support, even meeting with the Lord Mayor of Bristol and the Leader of TGWU and eventually speaking with the parent company of the union, Transport Holding Company, urging them to get involved. 

Negotiations continued for months until 27th of August 1963 in a mass meeting when it was finally agreed the colour bar would be lifted. The announcement was made the following day, which, by coincidence, also so happened to be the day of M.L.K’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech. The following month the first non-white person started work as a bus conductor.

‘Britain’s first anti-discrimination laws’

“it is telling just how difficult it was to even be listened to.”

This movement is now credited with influencing the Race Relations Act of 1965 which made it illegal to racially discriminate in public places and then was extended to matters of housing and employment in 1968. Indeed Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent for The Independent newspaper, said “Few doubt that without Mr Stephenson’s efforts it would have been difficult for Harold Wilson’s Labour government to bring in Britain’s first anti-discrimination laws.” What I believe is significant, however, is, whilst Stephenson and his cooperatives achieved a great victory for race relations in the UK, it is telling just how difficult it was to even be listened to.

Connections to current times

If there are any lessons to be learnt, it’s that an establishment that profits off the silencing of a particular group of people will be almost immovable to any form of change. The West Indian Council had to actively prove the racial discrimination and then have their concerns ignored for months. Any form of change will be slow and hard, as demonstrated by the events of 1963. Whilst we’ve identified a problem in our society, if we have any chance of making any change, we have to be aware of the long and strenuous journey we have to take, and yet, even now, the discourse is dying out. 

Perhaps it’s telling, then, that many of you reading this right now would never have been aware of this significant part of our British History (and yet we know all about the events of M.L.K that took place on the exact same day) had you not read this article. It’s almost as if the establishment was worried that if we did know of the events of the Bristol Bus Boycott of 1963, we too might feel like we could fight the system, and win? I’d hate to think they were wrong.

Aarthee Parimelalaghan

Featured image courtesy of Sushil Nash on Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.