‘How I wanted to study to become equipped to lead Jamaica when it became independent.

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When I arrived in England from the Caribbean in the year 1947 I was only a young man just past the age of 20years, I thought I would be able to further my education and to carry on learning about politics, you will understand while I was in Jamaica, from the age of 12 years I was involved in the new growth of political movements, I associated with all the leaders, even as an Errand Boy. 

My aim and objective in life was to learn as much as I could, in the hope of returning to become the Prime Minister of Jamaica, realising that all the leaders of the Peoples National Party, Manley, Nethersole, Glasspole, and Richard Hart, to mention just a few, were all lawyers, therefore the obvious thing I should do, was to study Law, so that I may be equipped to lead Jamaica when it became independent.

This was only a dream, because with the racism in England at that time all doors were closed to the advancement and improvement for people like myself.  Although I had the qualification which was necessary to enter College this was refused, my education was not good enough, this was funny because the qualification I had which was my ‘Junior and Senior Cambridge’ Certificate of Education was given to me from England.  When I protested about what I thought was wrong I was told my qualifications were only for the Colonies and was not good enough for an entrance to any College or Universities in England.

This only strengthened my resolve and my determination that under no circumstances I would allow myself to be blighted by such treatment, instead I began to learn the true meaning of politics, the lies, more lies, hypocrisy, and deceit used by Politicians to maintain their strangled hold over the masses. 

Deep down within me with all the pressure I had, the difficulties in trying to exist, and even the hunger I suffered, did not prevent me from learning, and remembering.  Until this day in my twilight years my memory is just the same as it was in my youth, because I learnt one should not forget what they have learnt.

And now I am going to do my best to enlighten the public to let them understand the evil of politics, and why politics as it is will never be in the interest of the masses, but in the interest of the few.

First I learnt there was a word called democracy, and I had to learn and absorb within myself what democracy means and what it was all about.  I soon realised all democracies had a two party state, one right wing and the other would  fool themselves and the people in believing there are two different parties, when they are just the same.

In 1947 when I came to England, the War had been ended 2 years, so England was in a turmoil, there was poverty, unemployment, buildings which had been destroyed and areas of London lay waste, yes Britain had to be rebuilt. 

There was a Labour Government in power led by one ‘Mr Clement Atlee’, this Party had set out to rebuild England for the benefit of all, but this ideology did not go down well with the people who had ruled England for century’s and believed they had the God given right to rule, I am referring to the Tories or Conservatives as they call themselves. 

Where I started to learn the difference between these parties was when the Labour Government decided to build houses to house the poor.  So many people had no where to live, after all, these people had suffered 6 years of War, they needed something better, so they started building houses to house the poor.

I remember there was a mighty row in Parliament between both Parties, with the Tory Party condemning the Labour Party for wasting tax payers money.  How can you build houses with baths in for these people, they do not know what a bath is, and they will only use the bath to store their coal, the working man should never have a bath in their house it is a waste of tax payers money. 

All the time the Labour Governement were in power for that period, the media and in line with the Tories, did everything in their power to condition the peoples minds against themselves, this was not difficult because it was a time when black people started returning to England after the War.

Please note during the War black people joined the Army, the Air Force, the Merchant Navy, and thousands died in their effort to bring food to England so that the people could eat.  When the War was over all the Merchant Seamen the soldiers and those who worked in the Royal Air Force were no longer needed, and were repatriated back to the countries they originally came from.

The British people in that short space of time had conveniently forgotten black people were here during the War, and what contribution they made towards the freedom and liberty of Britain from Nazi domination.  The Tories and the media, saw it expedient to use the presence of the black people to mislead and to mis-educate the struggling masses, the black people were blamed for everything. 

No black person was entitled to any of these houses which were built, which later came to be known as Council Estates.  So much so, that in the eyes of the black people these Estates were known as the white mans reserve black people could not enter.

Poison was spilled daily by the media namely the Daily Mirror, Telegraph, The Evening Standard , and all the other rags spewing hatred for black people .  The Colour Bar began to gain momentum, and racism became the order of the day. 

At the same time the Tories and the media were busy creating an atmosphere of fear among the people in order to prepare them for a future War.

 One will remember at a meeting between Churchill and Roosevelt and Montgomery,  at Yalta in Germany. Churchill wanted to attack Russia forgetting Russia was the one who saved England.

Oh Communism was a dirty word, all communists had to be wiped out, the Daily Worker who had a different opinion from the rest had to be destroyed. 

Worse still the Trade Union movement was growing stronger, they stood for the rights of the poor, because they were the poor, they remembered the poverty and hunger which existed before the War, the Jarrow March of 1926 where hundreds of workers marched from Scotland to Trafalgar Square London where many were beaten, they did not want this to happen again, they became stronger and stronger.

This upset the Tories who were determined to smash the Labour movement at all cost, and how best to do this than to divide them by colour and creed.  Instead of dividing us, the black people knew where their position was which was not with the Tories but with the Labour movement.

We stood aside and watched helplessly as the media and the Tory Party sharpened their knives and as it is said the Pen is Mightier than the Sword, this was proved correct, because with all the hatred which was spilt, the people began to forget who they were and where they came from.  

I can remember personally working into a factory where the Foreman was a Labour Convener until he brought a small house in Woodford London, a two up and two down, he immediately resigned his position as Convener and Shop Steward, now he owned a house he decided he was now a Tory, no longer a Working Class and when I questioned him, his reply was laughable, when I did not have a house I did not have anything to conserve, but now I have my own home I have everything to conserve, therefore I am now a Tory.

Themedia especially the Newspapers owned by the late Lord Beaverbrook, were so dominant that the Government of the day found themselves in a difficult position.  What with the rising tide of fascism in South Africa that we had to contend with, bearing in mind we believed we had just fought and defeated fascism, but this was not so.  The right wing organisations such as Mosley and his Black Shirts, the League of Empire Loyalists and other fascist organisations began to grow.  The leaders of these organisations were members of the ruling classes they were able to convince a lot of the working classes to join their movements.  The Labour Party was also in turmoil, they had to appease the working classes especially those who had become corrupt by forming laws and taking actions, which were not akin to the Labour Party. 

One only has to remember the case of the late Seretse Khama, he was the King of Bechuanaland now Botswana.  He came to England as a young man, and as young men do they meet a girl and fall in love, only in his case he fell in love with an English girl named Ruth Williams and they married.  Immediately Seretse Khama was banned and put into exile in this country because the Labour Government did not want to be at cross purposes with Doctor Daniel Malans fascist Government in South Africa.  There was a furore in Parliament with the Tory Party accusing the Labour Party of meeting the request of the South African Prime Minister.  The hypocrisy of this was when the Tory came into power they banned him for life.

The racism was so acute that black people were afraid to be seen in certain areas such as the Elephant and Castle, Southwark, Oxton and other areas, fearing attack by the racists elements which were out there. 

So feckled and confused were the people at the time they did not know what to believe or what to accept, I worked among them and to me they were decent people which the powers that be were trying to corrupt, to confuse their minds in order to use them to do their dirty work whatever that was.

The Labour Party under the Marshal Plan raised money from the United States to help in the rebuilding of England and they went about their task for and on behalf of not only the working classes but all the people.  This did not please the Tory Party nor did it please the media.

Over the years the media has grown and become so influential that they dictate what Government we have in power, but then the media always dictates how we should think, how we should live, what our standard of living should be, how we are educated to fit into the shelf system which our society is based upon.

At that time the black youngsters who could not find work resorted to Boxing and there were many good boxers among them,  These young black people will fight in the ring with up and coming white Boxers, but rarely did the black boys win.  It does not matter how much the white Boxer is beaten by his black opponents, the beaten white boxers hand would be raised in triumph.  If the black Boxer happened to knock out the white Boxer he would immediately be disqualified for hitting below the belt.  These injustices were supported by the media, not only that they advocated that black Boxers should not be fighting White Boxers this was a form of Jim Crowism.

There was three brothers born in Leamington Spa England from a Barbadian father and an English mother, they were called ‘The Turpin’s’ namely  Dick, Randolph, and Jackie.  They were extremely good and Britain could see in Randolph Turpin there could be a world Champion something which was very scarce in England.  So stupid and reactionary and ignorant were the media, the same night Randolph Turpin beat Sugar Ray Robinson and became the World Champion he was no longer black as far as the media was concerned, he was an English man.  That same night when the fight was in progress a mixed race baby was found abandoned in a telephone kiosk at Victoria, London.  While Turpin who was of mixed race was now an Englishman the child who was also of mixed race was referred to as West Indian born in Britain.  What hypocrisy!

With all the problems which confronted us and the people of England at that period of time ,one can safely say the Labour Party was the saviour of this country and of the working classes, they were responsible for rebuilding this country, they were also responsible for giving the English working classes a reason for living, a reason to be proud of themselves, and a reason for the children of the working classes to look forward to a better future.  Under them the working class children begin to learn to read and write, they become well fed and they aspire to be what they are today.  The Tory party have always made promises, promises they know they cannot fulfil because it is not in them to do so, but they know they can bamboozle and mislead the working classes, by telling lies and discrediting other people accusing them sometimes of the evil they the Tory Party has created.  They have tried their best to kill the Labour Movement and what worries me is with the media at work they may succeed.  If this happens God help the people of England , especially the working classes.

Lies and more Lies.  When the computer was first invented and we were told the machines would be invented, and that one machine would do the work of 100 people, the Trade Union knowing their history was very worried, but of course the media had a different idea how to calm their worries by telling them lies.  It was a big thing no longer we would have to work 5 days a week, because the machines would do the work for us, and we would all maintain our employment, and the wages we were receiving would raise accordingly, and we should put emphasis on recreation.  This did not happen but instead the people went on the dole, incurring massive unemployment.  The Government would set up so many places of recreation for us we could go free of cost to be healthy and fit in this Utopian State which the computerised factories would bring us.  The people believed this because of their short memories and above all the conditioning of their minds into muddled thinking.  Now they no longer think for themselves,  we no longer have Lord Beaverbrook instead we have Rupert Murdock. 

When the Tory leader can hold that fascist newspaper in his hand, waving it around praising the paper for supporting him, what he is really saying is the responsibility of the future of this country no longer lies in the hands of the politicians but in the media and globalisation, WHEN WILL WE LEARN.

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