changes in british society

8/16/2019 Changes in British Society

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Changes in British Society

1955 – 1975: Immigration

Vlad Victor

Feodorof Andrei


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What is immigration?

• Migration is the movement ofpeople from one place to

another.

• Emigration is when someone

leaves a country.• Immigration is when someone

enters a country.

• The reasons for migration can be economic, social,

political or environmental.

• Migration usually involves push and pull factors.


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easons !or migration

Newspaper article from the Sheffield Star in

the !"#s describes how $fabulous wages%

are attracting immigrants to Sheffield

Some people choose tomigrate, e.g. someone

who moves to another

country to increase

their &ob prospects.

"ull factors include'

• (etter employment

prospects• )reater wealth or

affluence• *olitical stability•

+mproved safety• (etter uality of life• (etter service provision

Source: The Star, 1950s, Sheffield Local Studies Library


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easons !or migration

Some people are !orce# tomigrate, e.g. someone

who moves due to war

or famine.

"ush factors include'• *overty• -ar • Flooding• rought• /igh crime• *oor safety• 0ac1 of services or

opportunitiesNewspaper article in the Sheffield Star

shows children who fled the 2osovan -ar in

!!34!!! to live in Sheffield



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$i!!erent types o! immigrants

• A migrant %or&er is someonewho moves to another countryto find wor1.

• An asylum'see&er issomeone who is fleeingdanger in their own countryand who has applied to theauthorities in another countryto be accepted as a refugee.

• A re!ugee is someone whoseapplication for asylum hasbeen successful and has beengiven permission to stay in the52.

Many refugees and asylum4see1ers have had e6tremely

traumatic e6periences and have

had to leave their homes at very

short notice.


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(istory o! immigration in She!!iel#

• The !"#s saw a huge rise in

immigration to (ritain. /owever,most (ritish cities have a long

history of immigration.

• For hundreds of years people have

come from different parts of the

world to ma1e a new home in

Sheffield.

)ote some o! the names !rom the 1**1 an#

1*91 census in She!!iel#:

• Samuel +le%s&y, tailor, - .rin#le .ate• /ouis Met0ger, por& utcher, 9* West

ar • .io2anni 3erarrio, glass car2er an#

gil#er, 17 "enley Street• 4ohn +$onnell, oot an# shoe ma&er,

-1 /amert Street

7an you guess from theirsurnames where these

Sheffield people were

originally from8

Source: Sheffield Census, 1881; 1891, Sheffield Archives and Local Studies Library


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6he eginnings o! mass immigration to She!!iel#

• Irish: +rish immigration to Sheffield wasfirst recorded in 9::

• "a&istani: +mmigration began in the!"#s to meet labour shortages.

• In#ian: +mmigration pea1ed in the!;#s.

• Chinese: The first 7hinese immigrantscame in the late 3##s. After theSecond -orld -ar many more came to(ritain.

• Bangla#eshi: (egan to arrive in the 52after !9" to wor1 in Sheffield factories.

• 8!rican Cariean: Most came toSheffield during the labour shortages ofthe !"#s.

+mmigrants pictured in Attercliffe,

Sheffield in !"3

-hen did many new

immigrants start to arrive

in the 52 and Sheffield8



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Why %as there so much immigration into

Britain in the 195s?

•(efore the Second -orld -ar


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"ush an# pull !actors

/aour shortage (y the !"#s (ritain

had a serious

shortage of labour =

especially for low4

paid and uns1illed

&obs. +mmigration

offered a practical

solution.

ecruitmentcampaigns

(ritish firms

advertised for

overseas wor1ers'• National /ealth

Service

formed in !93

needed wor1ers.• Northern te6tile

companies

recruited wor1ers

from +ndia and

*a1istan.• 0ondon Transport

went to the

7aribbean to find

staff.

)e% opportunities

-or1ing in (ritain offered the opportunity to

earn good wages. Many male immigrants

aimed to wor1 in (ritain for a short time,

sending money home, before returning

themselves.

EncouragementMany immigrants

were given financial

support to ma1e the

move including

interest4free loans

for travel.


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Why #i# people come to She!!iel# in

the 195s an# 19s?

She!!iel# %as a ma;or in#ustrial city untilthe 19*s so the earlier arri2als came

here to !in# %or&, particularly in the steel

in#ustry

•

/arge'scale immigration starte# in She!!iel# laterthan in many other cities

W(


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1951 census o! She!!iel#

• ":" born in +reland

• #; born in *oland

• ;;" born in )ermany• "3C born in +ndia

• C3 born in *a1istan

• : born in Damaica

• Small number of

Somalis• A Dewish population

The census collects and records information about the population. The !"

census for Sheffield recorded'

4amaica

"a&istan

In#ia

-here did most of

Sheffield%s immigrants come

from in the !"#s8

Source: #i$ration and %iversity in Sheffield: &ast, &resent and uture, &rof' &aul (hite, )niversity of Sheffield, *00+


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6he e=perience o! immigrants, 1955 ' 1975

Newspaper reports in the

!"#s highlight e6amples of

integration in Sheffield.



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Employment an# e#ucation

E)rowing up together =

nine year old vonne(rowne from Damaica,

who lives in Scott @oad,

en&oys her lessons at

Firs /ill 7ounty Dunior

School.G



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acial tensions

• 5nions complained that immigrantswere ta1ing &obs from white people byaccepting lower wages.

• Some politicians and members of the

public argued that many immigrantswere coming to (ritain, not to wor1,but to receive generous welfarebenefits.

• Tensions also developed abouteducation and housing.

3or many immigrants,

Britain %as not as%elcoming as they ha#

e=pecte# 6hose

migrating to Britain o!ten

settle# in poorer inner'

city areas White people

starte# to mo2e out an#

y 1957 the go2ernment

%as concerne# aout

>%hite'!light an#

>segregation in some o!

Britains ma;or to%nsan# cities 6ensions

#e2elope# %ithin %hite

%or&ing class

communities



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"rolems in She!!iel#)e%spaper reports !rom She!!iel# in the 195s re2eal the

%orries many ha# aout immigration

ENow there is

(B-+0B@MBNT =

even FBA@ on the

part of residentsG.

EA crac1 doing the

rounds in Attercliffe

these days runs li1e

this' $+ was wal1ing

along Attercliffe

7ommon and + sawa white man%.G

E@ugged Attercliffe people are not the type to worry about such

things as colour bar problems but a situation is arising which +

found at least bewildering to many.G



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.ro%ing social unease

+n !"; and !"3, Mr

(ingham of Sheffield

7ouncil of Social

Service wrote to the

Secretary of Statereuesting a 7olonial

Hffice -elfare Hfficer

to help with inter4

racial community

wor1.

Many o! the early

immigrants %ere young men%ithout their !amilies in

Britain 6his le# to:

• A culture of drin1ing in bars

and clubs.

•

Attac1s on immigrants bywhite wor1ing class $Teddy

(oys%.

• )raffiti appealing to $2eep

(ritain -hite%.

•

Sensational newspaperreports about the supposed

lac1 of cleanliness, criminal

activities and se6ual

practices of immigrants in

(ritain.

Sources: The Star, 1950s, Sheffield Local Studies Library; &!-C!10.1-*5/0, 'ovin$here'or$'u2


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Contemporary 2oices6he increasing numers o! 8sian

immigrants settling in Britain !ace#a##itional prolems:

• They often spo1e a different language and

did not understand Bnglish which made

the search for &obs difficult.

• They often practiced different religious

customs such as arranged marriages and

fasting. This e6cluded them from many

social activities.

6his meant 8sian immigrants %ere

more li&ely to set up their o%n

usinesses 6hey also ought cheap

property to rent out to other

immigrants

Audio file' Mr , Tinsley

-hat does this interview

clip suggest about race

relations in Sheffield8

Source: !ral history collection, 3cassette 184 Sheffield Local Studies Library

3&lease eail archivessheffield'$ov'u2 for

&oer&oint ith ebedded audio cli64

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


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What %as the immigrant e=perience?

6he e=periences o! many

immigrants %ere o!ten 2ery#i!!erent:

• Some were highly educated but wereforced to ta1e on low4s1illed

employment as their ualificationswere not recognised in (ritain.

• Many found themselves sharingovercrowded, poor uality housing.

• They were discriminated against, withsigns appearing for accommodationand &obs stating $No coloureds% and $Noblac1s%.



19/31

+n housing in She!!iel#

Terraced housing in (urngreave,

Sheffield, !;"

E=tracts !rom inter2ie%s

%ith the el2in Cariean

/unch Clu, She!!iel#:

E+ lived in (runswic1 Street, (roomhall.

+t was terrible. The digs they were

shoc1ing, indescribable. +t didn%t matter

how big your family was, you had to livein one room. +t was cold and damp = we

ended up in the worst housing. +t%s

terrible what we leave behind = my home

in (arbados was lovelyIG

EThe first blac1 man that came to Sheffield bought a house, then all the blac1people that came here get pac1ed into that house. Hne lot of people wor1 all

night and another lot in the days, and you share a bed. That was awful really,

because when you were at home it was not only family that slept together but

strangers.G

Source: Taste the rou$hness: 7elvin Caribbean Lunch Club tal2in$ eories, 1991, Sheffield Local Studies Library: .*5'1S


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+n !in#ing %or& in She!!iel#E=tracts !rom inter2ie%s



Firth (rown

steelwor1s, Sheffield,

!"#s

E+ was wor1ing on the stro1e unit Jat the hospitalK with a lot of oldish people.

Sometimes the old people came in and said $we don%t want no blac1 body to

touch us, all right8% The Sister would come = she say to them

$she is wor1ing for us and if you don%t want her, you don%t want us%.G

E+ was wor1ing at the rolling mill at /adfield%s at

Vulcan @oad. + was the one coloured man and they

do give me a hard time. They don%t want no

coloured man in that mill. The man in front gave methe steel aw1ward so that if + ever missed it, it was

coming right on me so that + could have been burned

up or something. /e gave it me aw1ward because

he wanted me to get browned off so +%d leave the &ob.

(ut + survivedL + paid a high price for it but + came

out on top.G

Source: Taste the rou$hness: 7elvin Caribbean Lunch Club tal2in$ eories, 1991, Sheffield Local Studies Library: .*5'1

S


21/31

+n li2ing an# socialising in She!!iel#

E=tracts !rom inter2ie%s



(oo1s compiled to record the

e6periences and memories of firstgeneration Sheffield immigrants.

E+ didn%t care what colour his s1in was. ou see +%m white, but my husband is

coloured. ears ago we went for a drin1, &ust in the dinner time. -e were as1ed

to leave = $we don%t allow no blac1 men in here% they said. -e had to get up and

go.G

EMy husband and friends went out to a

pub in Attercliffe and called for a drin1.

They too1 bac1 the glasses and saw the

bar manager brea1 all four glasses. Theydidn%t say nothing. -hen they returned

their glasses after the second drin1 the

same happened. After the third drin1 they

bro1e their own glasses and threw them in

the bin and the manager called the police.

The policeman says $you better go andfind yourself another pub%.G


22/31

6he )otting (ill race riots, 195*

6ensions came to a hea# in Britain in 195* %hen there %ereserious race riots in oth )ottingham an# /on#on 6he

)otting (ill riots in /on#on recei2e# %i#esprea# me#ia

co2erage

• +n Notting /ill, -est 0ondon by the !"#s there was a strong

7aribbean community.

• Hver two wee1s in August !"3, hundreds of young white men

attac1ed immigrants with chains, 1nives and petrol bombs.

• More than ## white men were arrested as well as some blac1 men

who had armed themselves in self4defence.


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8!termath o! the riots6he )otting (ill riots %ere a turning point

in Britains immigration history:

• 9,### immigrants returned to the 7aribbean.

• The 7aribbean governments made an officialcomplaint to the (ritish government.

• *ublic and political opinion became divided.

• +mmigrant groups in (ritain organisedthemselves into official groups to protecttheir interests.

• ebate increased about the e6tent ofimmigration into (ritish inner cities and howto deal with racism.

The first Notting /ill

7arnival was organised in

!"! by 7laudia Dones in

response to the riots that

had happened the previous

year.

Source: ottin$ ill Carnival, *000 3co6yri$ht: Sheffield Archives staff4


24/31

$eate an# #iscussion: the immigration

@uestion is raise#

6he immigrant e=perience o! Britains &ey cities,inclu#ing She!!iel#, %as #eate# in 195*: After the Notting /illriots, the (ritish

government was

faced with two main

issues'

. The number ofimmigrants entering

(ritain

. -ays of tac1ling

racial discrimination

E=tracts !rom the (ouse o! /or#s

#eate on colour pre;u#ice an#

2iolence AShe!!iel#, 195*

EThe recent wave of immigrants coincided with a fall

in employment in Sheffield, and for most of these

immigrants there have been, and still are, no &obs.G

E+ heard charges of discrimination against coloured

people in labour e6changes.G

EThere have been cases of young hooligans coming

into the district with bicycle chains loo1ing for

coloured people to attac1.G

EMore should be done at the JotherK end to

inform potential immigrants of conditions

and openings available in the 52.G

EBarlier than eighteen months ago there

was, in fact, no colour problem whatever

in Sheffield.GSource: L %eb 19 ov, 1958 3ansard4


25/31

Controlling the numers+n !; there was a

sudden increase in

immigration to(ritain. This was

partly due to fears

that the (ritish

government was

preparing to limit the

numbers allowed into

the country.

Source: The Sheffield Tele$ra6h, 1950s 19+0s, Sheffield Local Studies Library

)e%spaper reports

in the Sheffield

Telegraph !rom the

late 195searly

19s re!lect thegro%ing pressure

on the go2ernment

to restrict

immigration


26/31

/a%s to control immigration

Common%ealth Immigrants 8ct

19D = meant that immigrants from theformer (ritish colonies had to have a

pre4arranged &ob before entering

(ritain, or have special s1ills reuired

by the (ritish economy.

Common%ealth Immigrants 8ct 19* = tightened

controls further. +mmigrants now needed to have a

parent or grandparent who had been born in (ritain.

Immigration 8ct 1971 = meant that only 4monthwor1 permits were issued so that immigrants could only

remain in (ritain for a limited time. (y the early !C#s,

(ritain had virtually stopped all blac1 and Asian primary

immigration.

• *rimary

immigration'

when someone

moves to

(ritain alone.• Secondary

immigration' if

members of

their family

later &oin them.


27/31

"olitical opposition to immigration• British nion o! 3ascists = set up by Hswald Mosley in !:. The

party campaigned against immigration in !"! but gained littlesupport.

• 19- general election = the 7onservative M* for Smethwic1, -est

Midlands, *eter )riffiths defeated 0abour with the slogan $if you

want a nigger for a neighbour vote 0abour%.

•

)ational 3ront party = formed in!;C, the party was firmly opposed to

immigration, improved race relations or

multiculturalism. +t had #,###

members by the mid4!C#s although its

e6istence had largely diminished by thelate !C#s.

• Enoch "o%ell = the 7onservative M*

made his $@ivers of (lood% speech in

!;3 calling for an end to all non4white

immigration and the introduction ofvoluntary repatriation.

See the short !ilm>8nti )ational 3ront

protest in Bra#!or#

A197* at

%%%y!aonlinecom


28/31

$ealing %ith racism• )overnment policies were

introduced to deal with racism.• @ace relations legislation was

passed in !;" which led to the

establishment of the @ace @elations

(oard.

• The @ace @elations Act !;3 madethe following provisions'

• iscrimination in housing and

employment banned.

• The use of restrictions such as

$no coloureds% were banned.

• +ncitement to racial hatred

banned

The 7ampaign Against

@acial iscrimination was set up in !;9

which lobbied for race

relations legislation. The

group lasted until !;C.

Source: Sheffield Archives: "/*1


29/31

Multiracial She!!iel# y the mi#'197s• (y the mid4!C#s there was greater

integration between white people and

immigrants. Second generation,(ritish4born immigrants started to

attend (ritish schools and adopting

(ritish culture.

• This brought its own issues = first

generation immigrants often felt their

children were losing touch with theirroots.

E2ents such as >West In#ian

3ortnight at Burngrea2e /irary,

She!!iel# in 1977 aime# to

promote greater un#erstan#ing o!

#i!!erent culturesSource: Sheffield Local Studies Library: &icture Sheffield


30/31

What ha2e you learnt?

• To what e6tent do you thin1 (ritain was becoming a society where

different races could live together harmoniously by the !C#s8

•

/ow much do you thin1 the issue of race changed in (ritain betweenthe mid4!"#s and the mid4!C#s8

Mar1 two columns on a piece of

paper one headed $@ace

relations in !""% and the other

$@ace relations in !C"%. 0istthe changes in race relations

that have ta1en place during

this #4year period.

Although the @ace @elations Acts of the !;#s did not stop racism, this official

government statement on the values of (ritish society moved (ritain a step

closer towards a multicultural society.


31/31

She!!iel# 8rchi2es an# /ocal Stu#iesI! you %oul# pre!er to use this presentation as the

asis !or a class 2isit to 8rchi2es an# /ocal Stu#ies or

in a 2isit y us to your class please contact us

Stu#ents %ill ha2e the opportunity to see an# touch the

original items

-e offer'

• Access to original primary source material from Tudor

times through to the st century.

• 7lass visits to the 7entral 0ibrary and to Sheffield Archives.

• Visits to schools to deliver classroom sessions.

• +ntroductory sessions for teaching staff.

• Hnline *ower*oint lesson resources.

• Focus *ac1s of colour facsimiles lin1ed to the National

7urriculum.

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