The Radical Bookshelf: Black British History through Literature

This course explores some of the radical reading materials that Black and Asian activists read, shared and learned from in Britain in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. These readings included theoretical texts, personal narratives, poems and novels, from a wide range of geographies and periods. From Frantz Fanon and Malcom X to Audre Lord and Sam Selvon, we will look at the writing of authors whose work directly impacted local community activists across Britain. We will approach extracts from these historically significant readings in an accessible way, so that everyone will be able to engage in discussion of key themes and arguments in class.

NB: there will be themes of racism, racialisation and gendered violence in the primary source material that we will be discussing. If you want to take part in this course, please be aware that these are highly sensitive themes and the way that you discuss them may have an impact on other students in the group. If you feel uncomfortable at any time during the classes you are welcome to leave the room and return freely, and you can stop participating in the course at any time.

This course is for anyone interested in Black and Asian British history, particularly histories of social movements and the ideas that inspired them. You do not need to have prior knowledge or experience of modern British history or critical reading.

In each week of the course we will look at a different key theme and text(s).

In the first session we will focus on having a general discussion of the historical context for the course as well as setting our goals. We will read short extracts (one or two paragraphs) of Cedric Robinson’s Racial Capitalism and Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth and discuss the key themes and arguments in class.

In week two we will explore extracts from readings centred on experiences of migration to Britain from the Caribbean, Small Island and The Lonely Londoners. We will look at these in their historical context and compare them to a short sample of the theoretical writing of Stuart Hall.

In week three we will look at Malcom X’s biography and the social movements it inspired in Britain. We will compare the experiences documented in an extract of the biography with more of Frantz Fanon’s work. We will also reflect on our goals set in week one.

In week four we will take a deeper look at the theme of gender and see how the writings of Angela Davis and Audre Lord impacted Black feminist movements in Britain.

In weeks five and six we will look at extracts of readings chosen by the course leader based on the group’s interests and ideas, identified in our discussion in week one. The course has been designed in this way so that we can curate the reading list to suit different perspectives and areas of interest, depending on the individuals in the group.

Students will have gained knowledge in Black radical history as well as a deeper understanding of historically significant radical texts. You will have developed skills in critical thinking and reading and be able to approach complicated writing with greater ease and confidence.