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Racial Adjustment Action Society

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The Racial Adjustment Action Society (or Raas, which in Jamaican connotes buttocks or arse) was a Black Power movement formed in 1965, following visits of Malcolm X in 1964 and 1965. Its founders were Michael de Freitas (Abdul Malik) who had emigrated to London in 1957 from Trinidad and had re-named himself Michael X, and Roy Sawh. It has been described as the forerunning Black Power organization in Britain of the time. RAAS was considered to be 'stridently militant', and in 1967 Michael X was jailed for incitement to racial hatred. Roy Sawh was also jailed for incitement to racial hatred.

The Black House

Early in 1969 RAAS bought premises at 95–101 Holloway Road for use as a cultural centre, shopping complex, hostel and headquarters, to be called "The Black House". On 15 January 1970 it was damaged by a fire. The police suspected that the fire had been the result of arson (which Michael X asserted was untrue), and in April 1970, Michael X and seven other RAAS members were arrested after allegations by businessman Mervin Brown that he had been robbed and assaulted. In autumn 1970 the Black House was closed down following a police raid, and RAAS fragmented.

Other related groups

Other related groups included the Co-ordinating Committee Against Racial Discrimination (CCARD) in Birmingham, the Indian Workers Association, the Movement for Colonial Freedom and the Indian Youth League, the Conference of Afro-Asian-Caribbean Organisations (CAACO) in London (the latter founded by Claudia Jones in 1962) and the Universal Coloured People's Association, formed by Obi Egbuna in 1967.

References

  1. Brown, Mick (25 March 2021). "Michael X, the gangster who seduced liberal London and hijacked the Black Panthers". The Telegraph. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  2. "Grassroots Black literature". The National Archives. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  3. ^ "The 'rebel' history of the Grove". Institute of Race Relations. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  4. Hall, Stuart; Back, Les (July 2009). "AT HOME AND NOT AT HOME: STUART HALL IN CONVERSATION WITH LES BACK (July 2009)". Cultural Studies. 23 (4): 658–687. doi:10.1080/09502380902950963. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  5. "Black British history: Remembering Malcolm's visit to Smethwick". Institute of Race Relations. 20 May 2005. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  6. "Catalogue description: Malik, MA, alias Michael X, of the Racial Adjustment Action Society: complaints of... 1970-1971". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  7. "The National Archives - Roy Sawh: From Where I Stand". The National Archives blog. 14 August 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  8. "Roy Sawh - The Guinean rebel". British Brown History. 4 January 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  9. "Legislating against Hatred: Meaning and Motive in Section Six of the Race Relations Act of 1965". academic.oup.com. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Black Power – 2. Main groups". Special Branch Files Project. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Catalogue description: The 'Black House', headquarters of the Racial Adjustment Awareness Society, at 95-101..." discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  12. "Black liberation organisations in Britain: the 1970s and 1980s | libcom.org". libcom.org. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  13. ^ "From Resistance to Rebellion: Asian and Afro-Caribbean struggles in Britain - A Sivanandan". asivanandan.com. 2 October 1981. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  14. Richard Graves. "The Black House". The Swinging Sixties. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
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