‘A nigger in the new England’: ‘Sus’, the Brixton riot, and citizenship

Abstract

In April 1981, Black youth in the South London neighborhood of Brixton participated in a two-day riot that resulted in numerous injuries and widespread property damage in an already economically depressed area. Immediately after the event, many politicians, including new Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, labeled the ‘disorder’ as wanton lawlessness; a framing that has, in many circles, scholarly and popular persisted. However, activists at the time attempted to locate the Brixton riot within a history of institutional racism endemic to all levels of English society. This paper situates the Brixton riot within the context of Section IV of the 1824 Vagrancy Act, which shaped the lives of Black youth in the 1970s and early 1980s, and demonstrates the level to which Black people were historically marginalized in English society in the post-World War II period.

Keywords:

• Black Britain
• England
• Windrush
• sus
• 1981 Brixton riot
• 1824 Vagrancy Act

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. As will be discussed later in the article migration status was often confused for Black Britons, thus throughout the paper, I will use ‘im/migrant’ and ‘im/migration’ to denote populations that have been incorrectly labeled; their status is unknown or a mix of immigrants and migrants.

2. There is some historical and academic disagreement as to whether West Indians had language difficulties. While some West Indians might have spoken French or Spanish in their home countries (and thus clearly would have been in need of English language instruction), migrants from English-speaking countries were difficult to locate in the records. It would not be until the 1980s that discussions of English language acquisition would recognize the prevalence of Creolized English as impeding, or at least affecting, the language patterns, and educational achievement of children of West Indian descent. Few schools implemented language programs for these students, however.

3. Mama,/ I really don't know to tell you this,/ cause I did make a solemn promise/ to take care of little Jim/ and try my best to look out for him…/ but nonetheless/ I'm sorry to have to tell you/ poor little Jim got arrested.

4. he's not a thief/ not even [of] a button

5. Mama,/ let me tell you what they did to Jim

6. Mama,/ more policemen came down/ and beat me to the ground…/ they charged Jim with sus,/ they charged me with murder.

7. The Notting Hill Carnival emerged in the aftermath of the Notting Hill riots of August 1958, when White teddy boys rampaged through Notting Hill and Nottingham, areas of significant West Indian settlement.