ÌÇÐÄTV

Students will often ask 'what are some good readings to prepare for this module?' - or, particularly as this is such an important/contemporary subject, will ask for good 'starting points'. The readings below are recommended as giving introductions or overviews of many of the topics discussed in this module. Those that are available electronically through ÌÇÐÄTV library are linked, others can often be bought fairly cheaply on used book sites such as AbeBooks.co.uk.

Some good starting points that will be useful throughout the module:

• - an excellent starting point for this topic.
• - highlighting Britain's denial and problematic relationship with its imperial history.
• - an engaging blend of memoir and history, thinks through identity and lived experience.
•  - a good overview of the 'Windrush scandal'.
• - a good overview of the histories of Black and Asian people in Britain.
• - a very influential book published in 1987, exploring racial discourses in Britain.

Other works to continue with:

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• Humayun Ansari, ‘The Infidel Within’: Muslims in Britain since 1800.
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• Andrew Geddes, The Politics of Immigration and Race.
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• Colin Holmes, John Bull’s Island: Immigration and British Society, 1871-1971.
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• Zig Layton-Henry,The Politics of Immigration: Immigration, ‘Race’ and ‘Race’ Relations in Post-War Britain.
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• Robert Miles and Annie Phizacklea (eds), White Man’s Country: Racism in British Politics.
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• Ian Spencer, British Immigration Policy since 1939: The Making of Multi-Racial Britain.
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• Richard Weight and Abigail Beach (eds), The Right to Belong: Citizenship and National Identity in Britain, 1930-1960.
• Robert Winder, Bloody Foreigners: The Story of Immigration to Britain.

Finally, some important 'classic works' for this subject:

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• Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.
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Some great primary source collections include:

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• Peter Leese, Beata Piatek, and Izabela Curyllo-Klag (eds), The British Migrant Experience 1700-2000: An Anthology.
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• Modern Record Centre (ÌÇÐÄTV), digitised documents relating to migration, policing, employment, community activism, etc.: /services/library/mrc/studying/docs/race/Link opens in a new window /services/library/mrc/studying/docs/rem/Link opens in a new window
• The Black Cultural Archives, the only national heritage centre dedicated to collecting, preserving and celebrating the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain:
• Legacies of British Slave-Ownership, a database of claims for compensation (by former enslavers for a loss of income) following the abolition of slavery in 1830s:
• Interviews conducted by the Birmingham Black Oral History Project:
• Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience 1950s-1990s:
• British Pathé have lots of interviews/reports/etc. and there are a lot of sources that you can find through searching their catalogue:
• Mass Observation Online has lots of material related to life in Britain, including ideas of national identity, race, etc.: