Jamaican-British

British Jamaicans (or Jamaican British people) are British people who were born in Jamaica or who are of Jamaican descent. The community is well into its third generation and consists of around 300,000 individuals, the second-largest Jamaican population, behind the United States, living outside of Jamaica. The Office for National Statistics estimates that in 2015, some 137,000 people born in Jamaica were resident in the UK. The number of Jamaican nationals is estimated to be significantly lower, at 49,000 in 2015.

Jamaicans have been present in the UK since the start of the 20th century; however, by far the largest wave of migration occurred after the Second World War. During the 1950s, Britain's economy was suffering greatly and the nation was plagued with high labour shortages. The British government looked to its overseas colonies for help and encouraged migration in an effort to fill the many job vacancies. Jamaicans, alongside other Caribbean, African and South Asian groups, moved in their hundreds of thousands to the United Kingdom. Almost half of all the men who came from the Caribbean to the UK throughout the 1950s had previously worked in skilled positions or possessed excellent employment credentials. The majority of Jamaicans settled in Greater London and found work in the likes of London Transport, British Rail and the NHS.

History and settlement

The Caribbean island nation of Jamaica was a British colony between 1655 and 1962. More than 300 years of British rule changed the face of the island considerably (having previously been under Spanish rule, which depopulated the indigenous Arawak and Taino communities) – and 92.1% of Jamaicans are descended from sub-Saharan Africans who were brought over during the Atlantic slave trade. Jamaica is the third most populous English-speaking nation in the Americas and the local dialect of English is known as Jamaican Patois. The tight-knit link between Jamaica and the United Kingdom remains evident to this day. There has been a long and well established Jamaican community in the United Kingdom since near the beginning of the 20th century. Many Jamaicans fought for Britain in World War I, with the British West Indies Regiment recruiting solely from the British overseas colonies in the Caribbean.

Volunteers originally only came from four nations (excluding Jamaica), however as the regiment grew thousands of Jamaican men were recruited and ultimately made up around two-thirds of the 15,600 strong regiment. The British West Indies Regiment fought for Britain in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign as well as the East African Campaign. Many of these men became the first permanent Jamaican immigrants in the United Kingdom after World War I, some of whom also subsequently fought for the country in World War II. Despite this, by far the largest wave of Jamaican migration to the United Kingdom including people of all genders and ages occurred in the middle of the 20th century. A major hurricane in August 1944 ravaged eastern Jamaica leading to numerous fatalities and major economic loss after crops were destroyed by flooding. This acted as a push factor in the migration of Jamaicans and at the time by far the largest pull factor was the promise of jobs in Britain. Post-war Britain was suffering from significant labour shortage and looked to its overseas colonies for help, British Rail, the NHS and London transport were noted as being the largest recruiters.

On 21 June 1948, the arrived in Britain with, among other migrants from the Caribbean, 492 Jamaicans on-board who had been invited to the country to work; they officially disembarked from the ship on 22 June 1948. Many more followed, as the steady flow of Jamaicans to the United Kingdom was maintained due to the continuing labour shortage. Between 1955 and 1968, 191,330 Jamaicans settled in the UK. These first-generation migrants created the foundation of a community that is now well into its third if not fourth generation.

Jamaicans continued to migrate to the United Kingdom during the 1970s and 1980s, albeit in smaller numbers, the majority of these people were from poor households and went to extreme lengths to get to Britain. There is an uneven distribution of household wealth throughout Jamaica and during the economic crisis of the 1990s lower class Jamaicans continued to migrate in significant numbers. A lot of these later arrivals came from Jamaica's capital and largest city, Kingston where the divide between rich and poor is much more evident than other places on the island. Most first-generation immigrants moved to Britain in order to seek and improved standard of living, escape violence or to find employment. Almost half of all the men who came from the Caribbean to the UK throughout the 1950s had previously worked in skilled positions or possessed excellent employment credentials. However, many found their access restricted to jobs the local population considered undesirable, such as general labouring, or to jobs that demanded anti-social hours. Over half the men from the Caribbean initially accepted jobs with a lower status than their skills and experience qualified them for. Jamaicans, therefore, followed the pattern of other irregular immigrant groups where they tended to work in poorly paid jobs in poor working conditions as these were often the only ones available to them.

Throughout the late 20th century, the Jamaican community in the United Kingdom has been brought into the spotlight due to the involvement of Jamaicans in race-related riots. The first notable event to occur was the 1958 Notting Hill race riots when an argument between local white youths and a Jamaican man, alongside increasing tensions between both communities lead to several nights of disturbances, rioting and attacks.

Due to instances of police brutality by the Metropolitan Police, the sus law which overwhelmingly targeted British Jamaicans to be stopped and searched, and the unprovoked shooting of a Jamaican woman in her Lambeth home after police believed she was hiding her wanted son, a riot broke out in Brixton in 1985. In 2005, another series of race riots in Birmingham occurred as a result of the alleged rape of a 14-year-old Jamaican girl by a group of up to 20 South Asian men including the Pakistani store owner it was reported she initially stole from. The Murder of Stephen Lawrence occurred in 1993, the London teenager of Jamaican parentage was stabbed to death in a racially motivated attack. The murder was handled in such a bad way by the Metropolitan Police that an inquiry into this established that the force had been institutionally racist, the investigation has been called 'one of the most important moments in the modern history of criminal justice in Britain' and contributed heavily to the creation and passing of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. Many Jamaicans live in the UK having no legal status, having come at a period of less strict immigration policies. Some Jamaican social groups have claimed asylum under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, this only continued until 2003 when Jamaica was placed on the Non-Suspensive Appeal list when restrictions on UK visas came into place, making it more difficult for Jamaicans to travel to the UK.

Demographics

Population and distribution

The 2011 UK Census recorded 159,170 people born in Jamaica resident in England, 925 in Wales, 564 in Scotland and 117 in Northern Ireland, making a total Jamaica-born population of 160,776. According to the previous census, held in 2001, 146,401 people born in Jamaica were living in the UK, making them the seventh-largest foreign-born group in the UK at the time. The equivalent figure for 2015 has been estimated at 137,000 by the Office for National Statistics, making them the 16th-largest foreign-born group. The Jamaican High Commission in London estimates that there are around 800,000 British people of Jamaican origin in the UK. Jamaicans in the UK are fairly widely dispersed, although there are some locations with much larger numbers and higher concentrations of Jamaican people than others – namely London. The Greater London area is home to some 250,000 Jamaicans, whilst the second largest number which is 45,000 individuals can be found in the West Midlands. 25,000 Jamaicans are thought to live in South West England, 18,000 in the East Midlands, 40,400 in South East England, 14,000 in North West England and 11,500 in Yorkshire and the Humber. Much smaller numbers are located in Wales (3,000) and Scotland, which the International Organization for Migration suggests that a mere 40 Jamaicans call home. Within the stated regions of the United Kingdom, most people of Jamaican origin can be found in the larger cities and towns. The largest Jamaican communities in the UK are listed below (all figures are 2007 estimates by the IOM, as there is not a specific "Jamaican" tick-box in the UK census to identify where Jamaicans live within the country).

* London – 250,000
Brent, Croydon, Hackney, Haringey, Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark, Waltham Forest and Enfield.
* Birmingham – 35,000
Handsworth, Winson Green, Aston, Ladywood, Newtown and Lozells
* Bristol – 20,000
St. Paul's and Redfield
* Nottingham – 12,200
Hyson Green, St. Ann's
* Wolverhampton – 10,000

* Manchester – 10,000
Old Trafford, Moss Side, Cheetham Hill, Chorlton, Didsbury, Wythanshawe, Urmston and Sale
* Gloucester – 4,000
Barton, Tredworth
* Leeds – 4,000–5,000
Chapeltown and Harehills
* Leicester – 3,000–4,000
Highfields and St Matthews
* Sheffield – 2,000
* Liverpool – 1,000–2,000
Granby and Toxteth
* Preston – 800

Besides the above locations, the IOM has also identified the following towns and cities as having notable Jamaican communities: Bath, Bedford, Bradford, Cardiff, Coventry, Derby, Doncaster, Huddersfield, Ipswich, Liskeard, Luton, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Swansea, Swindon and Truro. The majority of British Jamaicans are in the age range of 18 and 45, and investigation by the IOM into the ages of community members found that it is more or less on par with the general makeup of the British population. Around 8% of people investigated were under the age of 25, around 13% were in between the ages of 25 and 34. 22% were between 35 and 44, 27% were between 45 and 54 whilst 18% of respondents were aged between 55 and 64. The remainder were 65 years of age or older. As stated earlier, this investigation only involved a few hundred community members it is a balanced representation of the Jamaican community in the UK. Evidence that the Jamaican British community is a long established one is the fact that only around 10% of Jamaicans in the UK moved to the country in the decade leading up to 2007. In terms of citizenship, all Jamaicans who moved to the UK prior to Jamaican Independence in 1962 were automatically granted British citizenship because Jamaica was an overseas colony of the country. Jamaican immigrants must now apply for citizenship if they wish to become British nationals. The above table shows the number of Jamaicans granted citizenship in recent years.

Religion

The 2001 UK Census showed that 73.7% of Black Caribbeans adhered to the Christian faith, whilst 11.3% of respondents claimed to be atheist. This ranks as a higher percentage of Christians per head compared to Black Africans (68.8%), but a slightly lower percentage than White British Christians (75.7%). Jamaicans and people of Jamaican descent are regular religious worshippers and the majority of them worship across a wide range of mainly Black led Christian denominations as well as in the more mainstream Anglican and Roman Catholic churches. Over recent years the number of regular White worshipers in Anglican churches in particular have decreased significantly, numbers however have been maintained by Black Caribbeans and (mostly Jamaicans) who have taken their places. Other common Christian denominations followed by Jamaicans in the UK include Pentecostalism, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Pilgrims Union Church, the Baptist church and Methodism.

Culture

Cuisine

The earliest Jamaican immigrants to post-war Britain found differences in diet and availability of food an uncomfortable challenge. In later years, as the community developed and food imports became more accessible to all, grocers specialising in Caribbean produce opened in British high streets. Caribbean restaurants can now also be found in most areas of Britain where Jamaicans and other such groups reside, serving traditional Caribbean dishes such as curry goat, fried dumplings, and ackee and saltfish (the national dish of Jamaica). " Jerk" is a style of cooking from Jamaica in which meats (including pork and chicken) are dry-rubbed or wet marinated with a very hot spice mixture. The best known Caribbean food brands in the UK are Dunn's River, Walkerswood and Grace Foods. Grace Foods is originally from Jamaica but is now a multi national conglomerate.

In March 2007, Grace Foods bought ENCO Products, owners of the Dunn's River Brand, as well as "Nurishment", a flavoured, sweetened enriched milk drink, and the iconic Encona Sauce Range. Grace Foods supplies around one third of products in the UK and has global headquarters in Kingston, Jamaica. Walkerswood, also of Jamaican origin, is now owned by New Castle Limited and has a range of sauce and marinade products. In 2001, Port Royal started manufacturing Jamaican patties in London, which are available in supermarkets and Caribbean takeaways across the UK. A patty is the Caribbean version of a Cornish Pasty, pastry with a meat filling. Following its success in 2007 on TV show ''Dragons' Den'', the Levi Roots brand has grown into a multi-million pound enterprise. Reggae Reggae Sauce and other Levi Roots products are now stocked in all major UK supermarkets. In 2021, Grace Foods launched its ''Irie Eats Caribbean'' street food range at Tesco. This came in response to 2021 Mintel data, which revealed that nearly half (49%) of Brits would like to try Caribbean cuisine at home. Various other Jamaican brands have expanded their presence in the UK food and grocery market.

Jamaican and Caribbean cuisine is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. Caribbean food topped a (2015) list of cuisine types that British diners want more of on menus. According to a report by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export), the number of Caribbean restaurants in the UK tripled in the 12 months leading up to August 2019. Jerk chicken has been named as the UK's favourite Caribbean dish.

Fashion

There have been a number of British Jamaicans who have made their mark in the world of fashion. Supermodel Naomi Campbell was the first black model to appear on the front cover of ''Time'', ''French Vogue'', ''Russian Vogue'' and the September issue of ''American Vogue''. Jourdan Dunn became the first black model to walk for Prada since Naomi Campbell and was chosen as the face of Maybelline New York in 2014. Dunn became the first black British model to enter the '' Forbes model rich list'' and is considered an icon and supermodel. Munroe Bergdorf has walked several catwalks for brands including Gypsy Sport and was the first transgender model in the UK for L'Oréal. Leomie Anderson has walked in various Victoria's Secret Fashion Shows and became first black British Victoria's Secret Angel. Bruce Oldfield is best known for his couture and bridalwear designs and has a client list that includes Queen Rania of Jordan, Jerry Hall, Samantha Cameron, Charlotte Rampling, Jemima Khan, Sienna Miller, Rihanna, Catherine Zeta-Jones and the late Diana, Princess of Wales. Oldfield collaborated with McDonald's in 2008 and received an OBE for his services to the British fashion industry. Another notable contributor is Grace Wales Bonner who founded the London-based label Wales Bonner. Originally specialising in menswear, her designs have earned several prestigious awards. Bianca Saunders is the British holder of the ANDAM Fashion Award for young talent and her designs have been picked up by Ssense, matchesfashion.com and Machine-A. Other notable contributors include Nicholas Daley and Martine Rose.

Literature

British Jamaicans have made significant contributions to British literature. Poet James Berry was among the first Caribbean writers to come to Britain after the 1948 British Nationality Act. Berry's writing often explored the relationship between black and white communities and he was in the forefront of championing Caribbean/British writing. In 1981, he won the Poetry Society's National Poetry Competition, the first poet of Caribbean origin to win the prestigious prize. Andrew Salkey was another leading figure of the first wave of post-war Caribbean writers who settled and worked in London. He was the main presenter of BBC's ''Caribbean Voices'' and was a key figure in the formation of the Caribbean Artists Movement and other first wave writers gave Caribbean literature an international audience for the first time and helped establish Caribbean writing as an important viewpoint within English literature.

More contemporary contributions come from authors including Andrea Levy whose novel '' Small Island'' won the Whitbread Book of the Year and the Orange Prize for Fiction, one of Britain's highest literary honours. The book also earned Levy the 2005 Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was voted Best of the Best Orange prize novel ''Small Island'' tells the tangled history of Jamaica and UK through the eyes of characters who in 1948 arrive at Tilbury, London, on the HMT ''Empire Windrush''. ''BBC News'' included ''Small Island'' on its list of the 100 most influential novels and it was made into a two-part television drama of the same title. Levy became the first writer of colour whose pen would join the Royal Society of Literature's historic collection, which includes pens belonging to Charles Dickens, George Eliot, T. S. Eliot and Lord Byron.

Zadie Smith won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, the Commonwealth Writers' Best Book Award (Eurasia Section) and the Orange Prize for ''On Beauty''. Smith's acclaimed first novel, ''White Teeth'' (2000), was a portrait of contemporary multicultural London, drawing from her own upbringing with an English father and a Jamaican mother. ''White Teeth'' was an international best seller and won multiple accolades, including the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction, the Whitbread Book Award in category best first novel, the Guardian First Book Award and the Betty Trask Award. ''Time'' magazine included the novel in its list of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005 and the novel was adapted for television in 2002.

At the 2020 British Book Awards, Candice Carty-Williams became the first black woman to win the "Book of the Year" accolade, for her novel '' Queenie''. The novel, which describes the life and loves of Queenie Jenkins, a vibrant, young British-Jamaican, received positive reviews and was marketed as "a black ''Bridget Jones''". ''Queenie'' entered the ''Sunday Times'' Bestseller hardback chart at number two and went on to win numerous accolades. A TV adaptation of ''Queenie'' has been announced as being in development for Channel 4.

In July 2020, Linton Kwesi Johnson received the PEN Pinter Prize and was described as "a Living legend", "a poet, reggae icon, academic and campaigner, whose impact on the cultural landscape over the last half century has been colossal and multi-generational". Other notable contributors include Ferdinand Dennis

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases