Pastor recalls horrific racism he experience moving to UK as part of Windrush
A pastor who came to the UK as part of the Windrush generation has told of the vile racism he found in the country where colleagues would tell him to "go back to your jungle".
Pastor and great-grandfather Keith Channer faced horrifying hostility and segregation in Britain after moving from the Montego Bay in Jamaica at the end of 1960. After landing on UK soil, Mr Channer moved to West Bromwich, near Birmingham, to live with his sister.
He was one of a lucky few migrants at the time who did not have to rent, and spoke of the racism faced by those who tried to find homes. Mr Channer recalls numerous "To Let" signs outside of rented properties, which said "no Blacks, no Irish".
"When I decided to come there was no continuity of work in Jamaica," Mr Channer said. "You'd get six months and then you're laid off and then get some more work. There were lots of advertisements in the papers in Jamaica that there were jobs in England, over the radio you would hear it as well.
Keith and wife Alice shortly after the birth of their first child in 1965 (Keith Channer/BPM Media)"Travel agencies were coming to Jamaica at the time and they would advertise jobs and get you to move to England. You would go anywhere if you know that there were jobs and we were invited."
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Pastor Channer told his story as October marks Black History Month. People born in British colonies such as Jamaica and India were given citizenship status and the right to settle in the UK in 1948, prompting many to come over as part of the Windrush generation which continued into the 1970s.
Describing his first impressions of the UK, he described feeling "cold" wearing only two layers at the time. Mr Channer threw himself into making a living, taking on jobs at construction sites where he experienced racism and cruelty.
"One that stands out to me was when I was working for a construction contractor and there was a digger driver there," he said. "He would say to me 'you better go back to your jungle'. I don't know of any jungles in Jamaica, there's more jungles in the UK than in Jamaica.
"Another time, I was carrying some timber planks on my shoulder and he took the digger, wheeled it around and hit the timber off my shoulder. I cried." Back then, Mr Channer said people "associated all Black people with Africa" and "all Black people were called Jamaicans". Even if that isn't where they were from, any story you hear of anybody committing a crime they were Jamaican," Mr Channer added. "People even asked me sometimes whether Africa is in Jamaica, they were so ignorant."
Keith has now lived in the UK for 63 years (Keith Channer/BPM Media)Mr Channer became involved with the church aged 17 and now, at age 83, is a retired pastor based in Burton, Derbyshire. He described facing a "difficult" local reaction when moving his congregation to a church in Alvaston, Derby, in 1994. "I tried to integrate into the community as best as I could, we had opposition when we bought the church," he said.
"In a sense it was racism, because it was a predominantly white area and you have a black congregation coming in, they would give you some problems. One day we had a service and there were too many cars in the car park, so me and my wife had to park on the street and someone slashed our tyres. They behaved in difficult ways but we tried to show to them that we were not aggressive people or those who were against them."
Mr Channer and wife Alice, 79, were able to obtain paperwork confirming their dual Jamaican citizenship before the Windrush Scandal hit during Theresa May's leadership in 2018, under which many faced threats of deportation or prison.
"We came here as British citizens but then the government said that was no longer valid. I had to buy what I was, I didn't give it a thought at the time but only in hindsight I realised I was British and I had to buy what I was."
Despite the scandal and racism faced over the years, Mr Channer said the situation for Black people in this country has "improved." "I think there have been improvements because of laws as well, what people could've said to you in the 60s they can't say it to you now. They would be in trouble, there's laws that every successive government has brought in, we are feeling comfortable living here, I've heard stories but we can't complain."
- If you have a story for Black History Month, please get in touch at [email protected]
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