Windrush Stories: Don’t Give Up – a new exhibition coming to Bradford

Windrush Stories: Don’t Give Up – a new exhibition coming to Bradford

A new exhibition telling the Windrush stories of residents in the Bradford district is set to open at Cartwright Hall on Tuesday 18 October coinciding with Black History Month.

In 2022 a project funded by the British Library and managed by Nigel Guy, Director of Windrush Generations in partnership with Bradford Council’s Bradford District Museums and Galleries Service, set out to capture and preserve the previously untold stories of those from the Windrush Generation who came to live in the Bradford District.

After the devastation caused by World War II, the British Government was keen for more workers come to the UK to help rebuild the country and revive the economy. Many of the earliest arrivals were from the Caribbean. Those arriving in the UK between 1948 and 1971 have been labelled the Windrush Generation which refers to the ship MV Empire Windrush, which brought people from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and other islands in 1948.

As part of the project three young people from the Bradford district, with African and Caribbean heritage, took part in training and then interviewed over 20 Black elders to discover their stories of coming to Bradford as part of the Windrush Generation.

The project aimed to record and preserve for future generations these previously untold stories and this exhibition seeks to share these stories, to increase understanding of their experiences, and to recognize and celebrate the contributions the Windrush Generation have made and continue to make in the district.

Participants were asked to share memories of growing up in the Caribbean and personal stories of their life in the UK. They were also asked if they have any advice for young Black people today. One of the interviewees Cynthia Rowe said: ‘Don’t Give Up’, from which the title of this exhibition is taken.

Interviewer Grace Flerin “Working with the other young interviewers we got to explore the lives of our community – helping the people we interviewed narrate their own history. What a powerful method oral history has been to help this community create a record of their lives in their own words.”

Cynthia Taylor (88) who is one of the founder members of MAPA (a community organisation in Bradford formed in 1979), came to the UK from Jamaica in the 1960s. Her advice to young people “Be yourself, it’s a lot … don’t be anything you’re not, it doesn’t help really.”

Cricket and music fan, Winston Williams (74) (also known as Jah Man The Reverend by the local West Indian community) came to the UK from Jamaica in 1965. He first worked in wool spinning at a mill on Thornton Road, then trained as a mechanic and an engineer at International Harvesters, before opening a music shop in Lumb Lane. He said: “I’m a Bradfordian. My postcode has always been BD8. The elders are passing away, it’s the younger generation’s time now.”

Nigel Sylvester Guy, Director of Windrush Generations, said: “By developing the young cohorts with new skills to respectfully engage their community elders to share their untold stories and to build a stronger identity and a sense of belonging, whilst increasing the understanding between diverse groups, these are the main achievements of this intergenerational heritage project. As descendants of the Windrush Generation it has been an honour and rewarding privilege to acknowledge and archive these personal stories of the changing environments of our local Windrush pioneers’ early lives in the Caribbean to the challenges faced and the lasting contributions they have made in the UK. We are standing on their shoulders!”

Councillor Sarah Ferriby, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Healthy People and Places, said: “This has been a fascinating project involving people from across the generations in our district. With young people working with older people from their communities, to help them tell their previously unheard stories and to share them with everyone via this exhibition.

“I’d like to thank all those who have contributed to this project and I’d encourage everyone to take time to visit the exhibition to find out about the amazing contributions the Windrush Generation have made and continue to make in the Bradford district.”

The exhibition runs from 18 October 2022 until 5 February 2023. Admission to Cartwright Hall and the exhibition is free.

For more information about this exhibition and Bradford Council-run museums and galleries visit www.bradfordmuseums.org