UFO Info Week-End

EH has also considered mounting blue plaques to Haile Selassie and Olaudah

EH has also considered mounting blue plaques to Haile Selassie and Olaudah Equiano, but has been unable to find addresses connected to them (for their information, Haile Selassie spent most of his time in Bristol). The other three are to Dr Harold Moody, Mary Seacole and Sol Plaatje. Many of these groups and individuals have been trying for years to set up a black-plaque scheme – I myself am one of several people who lay claim to the original idea, having announced weekly black-plaque tributes on my BBC London radio programme back in 1993.But the idea has only really taken off with the inspiration and determination of Devon Thompson and Jagwant Johal, of the Black History Foundation, who were alarmed by the fact that, of the 20,000 plaques already dedicated by English Heritage, only eight represent Asians; and of the five blue plaques to black people, two are to Americans who spent only a short time here (Jimi Hendrix and Paul Robeson). Others included the children’s author Valerie Bloom, representatives of the Olaudah Equiano Foundation, the Windrush Foundation and the Black History Foundation.

We can do better than that.”S I Martin was one of those present at the Brixton conference. Even I have trouble finding more than two statues in London portraying black people – one being Nelson Mandela; the other the fabled “black friar” of Blackfriars. Young, black Britons look around them and see no evidence of black people having played any role in the building of this country It’s demoralising. “All of our lives will be enriched by such a high-profile acknowledgment of the role that black and Asian people have played here for hundreds of years.”The historian S I Martin agrees that such a scheme for recognising the black presence in Britain is long overdue, and is confident that there are more than enough figures in history who warrant such a testimonial “Every child needs role models. “It was a historic day, not just for black and Asian Brits but for the whole country,” he says. One of the people behind it was Devon Thompson of the Black British Heritage Group. After a decade of resistance, the body in charge of immortalising the lives of historic figures on the walls of buildings connected to them, has agreed to formally recognise the unique contribution of black men and women to this country, by backing a scheme to introduce “black plaques”.The black plaque aims to do for black British and Asian British history what English Heritage’s blue-plaque scheme has done for – almost exclusively – white British achievement.Last week’s historic decision took place as part of “Destination Brixton”, an international trade exhibition aimed at promoting black tourism and business in Britain.

But, crucially, it was the presence of English Heritage and its apparent about-turn on the question of race-specific commemorations that made the event groundbreaking. Their meeting could result in the introduction of commemorative plaques, dedicated to the achievements of black and Asian people, in high streets from Glasgow to Essex.Friday’s gathering brought together several groups representing black and Asian interests nationwide. Last week, in Brixton, south London, a group of 30 people gathered at St Matthew’s church. This is unsurprising, because much of the black and Asian contribution to this country’s heritage over the past 500 years remains unknown to most Britons But all that may be about to change.