The extent of conflict between being black and being British

Abstract

©2015 Centre for Crime and Justice Studies 10.1080/09627251.2015.1080937 In a recent radio programme, a group of workers lamented the fact that black youngsters did not have role models and might be suffering a number of difficulties because of this. In a brief moment the general problem was identified but there was a sense of hopelessness regarding the solution. The specific question is whether widespread problems exist among now distant descendants from the grim history of African slavery in the Americas and the Caribbean. By presenting an historical overview we are able to witness the stark realities of a migrant population better understood by its fractured interpersonal relationships and struggle to maintain an inherent dignity and semblance of its own identity. As such, I will attempt to discuss the issues leading to the introduction of the inhumane and brutal system of African slavery and the difficulties encountered by subsequent generations in overcoming (or recovering) from this tragic set of circumstances. I shall contend that it is the cumulative effects of the traumatic injury prior to coming to Britain that has sought only to compound an already fragile migrant psyche. This vulnerable group, having suffered rejection and exclusion in Britain, manifest in the high rates of behavioural and mental disorders. Britain has been involved in the lives of Caribbean people for around 360 years, but the extent of this involvement has not been consistent from country to country: in Jamaica and Barbados the involvement was almost total; in Trinidad and Tobago and several other islands in the Eastern Caribbean, the British and French alternated as rulers; and in Guyana, South America the Dutch were dominant for much of the time prior to emancipation (freedom) from British slavery in 1833. It is of interest to note that Jamaica (population of 2.8 million, represents half the regional total), is 1100 miles away from the other main population group in Trinidad and Tobago and a further 350 miles from Guyana.