The Racial Adjustment Action Society (or Raas, which in Jamaican connotes buttocks or arse)[1][2] was a Black Power movement formed in 1965,[3] following visits of Malcolm X in 1964 and 1965.[4][5] Its founders were Michael de Freitas (Abdul Malik) who had emigrated to London in 1957 from Trinidad and had re-named himself Michael X, and Roy Sawh.[6][7][8] It has been described as the forerunning Black Power organization in Britain of the time.[9] RAAS was considered to be 'stridently militant', and in 1967 Michael X was jailed for incitement to racial hatred.[10] Roy Sawh was also jailed for incitement to racial hatred.[3]
The Black House
editEarly in 1969 RAAS bought premises at 95–101 Holloway Road for use as a cultural centre, shopping complex, hostel and headquarters, to be called "The Black House".[10] On 15 January 1970 it was damaged by a fire.[11] The police suspected that the fire had been the result of arson (which Michael X asserted was untrue[11]), and in April 1970, Michael X and seven other RAAS members were arrested after allegations by businessman Mervin Brown that he had been robbed and assaulted.[10] In autumn 1970 the Black House was closed down following a police raid, and RAAS fragmented.[12][13][14]
Other related groups
editOther related groups included the Co-ordinating Committee Against Racial Discrimination (CCARD) in Birmingham, the Indian Workers Association, the Movement for Colonial Freedom and the Indian Youth League,[13] the Conference of Afro-Asian-Caribbean Organisations (CAACO) in London (the latter founded by Claudia Jones in 1962) and the Universal Coloured People's Association, formed by Obi Egbuna in 1967.[3]
References
edit- ^ Brown, Mick (25 March 2021). "Michael X, the gangster who seduced liberal London and hijacked the Black Panthers". The Telegraph. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Grassroots Black literature". The National Archives. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ a b c "The 'rebel' history of the Grove". Institute of Race Relations. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ Hall, Stuart; Back, Les (July 2009). "AT HOME AND NOT AT HOME: STUART HALL IN CONVERSATION WITH LES BACK (July 2009)". Cultural Studies. 23 (4): 658–687. doi:10.1080/09502380902950963. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Black British history: Remembering Malcolm's visit to Smethwick". Institute of Race Relations. 20 May 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Catalogue description: Malik, MA, alias Michael X, of the Racial Adjustment Action Society: complaints of... 1970-1971". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "The National Archives - Roy Sawh: From Where I Stand". The National Archives blog. 14 August 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Roy Sawh - The Guinean rebel". British Brown History. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Legislating against Hatred: Meaning and Motive in Section Six of the Race Relations Act of 1965". academic.oup.com. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ a b c "Black Power – 2. Main groups". Special Branch Files Project. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Catalogue description: The 'Black House', headquarters of the Racial Adjustment Awareness Society, at 95-101..." discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Black liberation organisations in Britain: the 1970s and 1980s | libcom.org". libcom.org. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ a b "From Resistance to Rebellion: Asian and Afro-Caribbean struggles in Britain - A Sivanandan". asivanandan.com. 2 October 1981. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ Richard Graves. "The Black House". The Swinging Sixties. Retrieved 22 October 2024.