40 YEARS ON & NO RIVERS OF BLOOD - WHY ENOCH WAS WRONG: LMHR PRESS CONFERENCE
- When: Friday, April 18th, 2008
- Birmingham City Centre
12 noon on Friday 18 April 2008
at Comfort Inn, Station Street, Birmingham , B5 4DY.
Members of UB40 and other local bands will hold a press conference for Love Music Hate Racism on Friday to say Enoch Powell was wrong, there have been no rivers of blood – let’s celebrate multi-racial Britain.
40 years ago, on 20 April 1968, Conservative cabinet member, Enoch Powell, called for a halt to immigration, and an end to anti-race discrimination legislation. He predicted “Rivers of Blood” on the streets of Britain if immigration continued, and if the dependents of migrants living in Britain were allowed to join them here. His speech unleashed a massive wave of racism directed at Ugandan Asians fleeing Idi Amin, and at all non-white immigrants then living in Britain.
Those immigrants and their children built the NHS and drove the buses, as politicians including Powell had invited them to Britain to do, but soon did much more than that to enrich British culture.
Members of UB40 will be joined by Birmingham bands Steel Pulse, Midas and Decypher Collective and speakers from Love Music Hate Racism. The press conference takes place in the Comfort Inn, Station Street, around the corner from the Britannia Hotel, the site of the old Midland International Hotel where Powell made his notorious speech.
The press conference takes place one week before the LMHR Carnival ‘08. The Carnival is timed to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the iconic 1978 Rock Against Racism (RAR)/Anti Nazi League (ANL) carnival and march. Many coaches will be bringing groups from across the West Midlands to the event, which will be held in London. Email westmids@lovemusichateracism.com for details.
