Coming of Age : 1976 and the Road to Anti-Racism

Left : Suresh Grover
in 1976
swamped by Black and Brown people from the new Commonwealth. History tells us that
when racial prejudice is constantly drummed up publicly, there is invariably a corresponding
spike in ‘hate’ crimes against targeted groups of people and always disproportionally
against the Black and Asian communities. A more deadly storm had risen and we began to
experience racial attacks on our communities, No arena was spared: people, bookshops,
centres, workplaces or places of worship.
Our makeshift shrine for Chaggar began to attract large numbers of young people onto
the streets. Initially we made spontaneous speeches and others joined in but by early that
Saturday evening, there were over 500 young local people gathered round a corner and
outbreaks of spontaneous violence began to occur, mainly directed at owners of cars who
were perceived residents of a white enclave of Southall. The police responded by implementing
a blanket stop and search policy of any Asian person living or entering the area.
By mid evening arrests of young Asians began to take place. We responded by demanding
the immediate closure of all Indian owned Cinemas and restaurants as a mark of respect for
Chaggar. There were no formal discussion or meetings, but everyone engaged in discussing
the next steps of action, gravitated toward the Dominion Cinema. `It was the only building
where we could hold large meetings and where Chaggar had spent his last hours. It was a
symbol of self-reliance, owned by the Indian Workers Association (IWA) Southall. By sheer
coincidence the organisation had planned a conference on fascism at the Dominion Cinema
the next day. The IWA tried to appease the youth by passing a general resolution against
racism but this response only made people angry. Resolutions never worked, they were only
symbolic. The time for symbols had gone, many in the audience wanted real change. The
meeting descended into a ferocious and sometimes chaotic battle between two camps -
those who wanted immediate action against racism and the police and those sought reliance
or goodwill of politicians and the state. Despite being seasoned community politicians,
many of whom had challenged discrimination in the UK and fought for independence in
India, the IWA leadership couldn’t convince their own audience and some looked frightened
at the prospect of a new power emerging in their town. Then a local young man called for
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