Welcome to our Research Spotlight series, where we invite postgraduate researchers and early career researchers to submit short-form articles that sheds light on their research to highlight fresh scholarship specifically on underrepresented research areas in an effort to stay abreast with new voices in the humanities. In this article, Ali R Din examines how British Asian communities united and organized to challenge institutional and street-level racism in the 20th century.
As a mature graduate student at the University of Westminster in London, I often found myself discussing the past with younger British Asians. Reflecting on my own childhood in 1970s and 1980s Britain, I was struck by how little many younger people knew about the racial discrimination their communities faced and the powerful resistance movements that followed. Their lack of awareness isn’t surprising. Today, young British Asians have grown up in a society where an Asian Muslim is the Mayor of London, a Hindu of Indian origin was a Prime Minister, and a Muslim of Pakistani descent led the Scottish Parliament. Why would they assume this level of representation has not always been the norm?
But it was not. And a few years after graduating, I found myself pursuing a PhD in History on British Asian activism, delving into archives across the UK and interviewing social activists like Rahila Gupta and Farukh Dhondy to explore this complex and often overlooked history. My research highlights how British Asians through grassroots activism, legal battles, political engagement, and cultural resistance helped shift Britain from a place of impunity for racial violence to one of relative racial tolerance. I use the word “relative” intentionally. While overt racism is less tolerated today, it hasn’t disappeared. In the 1970s, ‘Paki bashing’ was a brutal and widespread phenomenon, with young Asian boys being hunted in the streets by far-right gangs.[1] Victims like Gurdip Singh Chaggar (murdered in Southall in 1976) and Altab Ali (killed in East London in 1978) are tragic reminders of this violent era. [2] But my focus is less on the violence itself and more on the resistance. What caused that violence to recede? How did Asian communities unite and organise to challenge institutional and street-level racism? And were the government’s Race Relations Acts genuine progress or reluctant concessions forced by activism and pressure?
Tarsem Singh in 1968 – Wolverhampton transport committee
One early and powerful example of resistance came from the Sikh community. During the 1950s and 60s, Sikh men were often pressured to abandon their turbans and beards to blend into British society, a practice many saw as sacrilegious. Some local transport authorities, like the Wolverhampton Transport Committee, even banned turbaned Sikhs from working as bus conductors. This was despite Sikhs who had proudly worn turbans while serving in the British military during both World Wars. As author Rashmi Desai noted in his 1963 study Indian Immigrants in Britain, ‘many Sikhs express grievances regarding discrimination by the host society due to their diacritical markers’.[3]
The Times article “Silent march” February 5th, 1968
Activists like Tarsem Singh Sandhu and Giyani Sundar Singh Sagar led the fight against these bans. In 1968, the Akali Dal, a Sikh religious organisation, partnered with the secular Indian Workers Association (IWA) to organise a “Silent Sikhs in Protest” march in Wolverhampton.[4] Over 4,000 people took part, marking the largest demonstration in the city since WWII. The collective endeavours of numerous antiracist movements facilitated moments of visibility and pride, shown by Guardsman Singh Lall donning a turban for the first time during the Queen’s 92nd birthday celebration in 2018.
Article in a leftwing Journal ‘Here to Stay’ Spring 1981 edition about the New Cross fire 1981
The 1980s brought a new wave of racial violence. While the New Cross Fire of 1981, which killed 13 Black teenagers, reluctantly received national attention, similar attacks against Asians were largely ignored.[5] In Walthamstow, East London, the Fire Brigades Union identified 17 suspicious fires between 1979 and 1981.[6] One of the most horrific incidents occurred on July 2, 1981, when Mrs. Parveen Khan and her three children were killed after petrol was poured through their letterbox. Her husband survived, but the police closed the investigation within weeks, ruling it not racially motivated.[7] No one was ever charged.[8] These stories are not isolated. Many racially motivated attacks remain unsolved, buried in police archives. Part of my research is about bringing these stories back into public memory and recognising the community-led efforts to demand justice.
Nasira Begum demonstration poster – Tandana files Manchester University Archives
Institutional racism, though less visible than street violence, has been equally damaging. British Asians faced significant barriers through discriminatory immigration laws and policies. Campaigners like Nasira Begum, Anwar Ditta, and Roy Sawh challenged these policies head-on, often risking everything to win legal battles against the Home Office. Ditta, for instance, fought to reunite with her children from Pakistan, while Begum campaigned to remain in Britain after her divorce.[9] Their collaborations with emerging Asian Youth Movements (AYMs) in the 1980s helped their victories and shape more equitable immigration policies.
Poster of campaign for Anwar Ditta calling to reunite her with her children in Pakistan
One of the most disturbing cases of institutional racism was the virginity testing scandal. In the 1970s, Asian women arriving at Heathrow and other airports were subjected to invasive medical examinations as part of immigration control and checks. I had lived through that era without knowing these abuses were happening to women who could easily have been my mother, aunt, or cousin.
Copy of a consent form for medical examination at Heathrow airport
The virginity testing scandal will serve as a key case study in my research. I will explore how Asian women’s organisations like AWAZ collaborated with Black women’s groups such as the Southall Black Sisters (SBS) and the Organisation of Women of African and Asian Descent (OWAAD) to fight these practices.[10] These organisations also worked alongside male-dominated groups like the IWA and the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) to bring attention to these injustices. The Home Office claimed the tests were legal and medically valid.[11] But their existence shows how deeply racism was embedded in immigration enforcement. My research demonstrates that both Labour and Conservative governments were complicit, a fact that has often been denied or glossed over.
A major theme in my research is the critical role Asian women played in anti-racist activism. Far from being passive or submissive, many women challenged patriarchal norms within their communities and became key organisers and spokespeople. Take Jayaben Desai, for example. A central figure in the 1976 Grunwick strike, she rallied support from across British society to fight for better working conditions and union recognition for South Asian women.[12] Her leadership helped reshape the trade union movement and its relationship with minority workers. In my research, I also interview Rahila Gupta of Southall Black Sisters, whose organisation remains a vital voice on issues like domestic abuse and immigration rights. Ultimately, my goal is to preserve and elevate these stories not just as history, but as ongoing inspiration. The struggles faced by British Asians in the 20th century laid the foundation for the rights and representation we see today. But as racism continues to evolve, so must our understanding of resistance. By revealing these histories, we pay tribute to those who preceded us and empower future generations to identify injustice and combat it with knowledge, unity, and fortitude.
[1] Sunday Times ‘Asian vigilantes take to the streets after Race attacks’ by David May, 02/06/1977
[2] Visser, J. (2020) ‘Anti-Racist Activism in London; Exploring Mult directionality at Commemorations of the Battle of Cable Street and the Murder of Altab Ali’, Journal of Intercultural Studies, 41(5), pp. 623–637. Doi: 10.1080/07256868.2020.1806803.
[3] Desai, R. (1963) Indian immigrants in Britain. London.
[4] Tandana files GB3228.028/01/97, Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Resource Centre at Manchester Central Library.
[5] Bunce, R. and Field, P. (2013) Darcus Howe a political biography. London: Bloomsbury Academic. p.188
[6] Makanji/7 files, Black Cultural Archives, Brixton, London.
[7] Ibid
[8] The Guardian “Met accused of giving up search for 1981 Walthamstow arson attacker” 9th April 2024
[9] Tandana Files, Box 2 – File 6.1.1.1.4, Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Resource Centre at Manchester Central Library
[10] AWAZ – is not an acronym, rather it means ‘Voice’ in the Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi language. (AWAZ collaborated with SBS and OWAAD on several campaigns such as the virginity testing scandal.
[11] Evan Smith and Marinella Marmo, ‘Uncovering the “Virginity Testing” Controversy in the National Archives: The Intersectionality of Discrimination in British Immigration History’ Gender & History, Vol.23 No.1 April 2011, pp. 147–165. p.155
[12] Dromey, J., Taylor, G. and Roache, T. (2016) Grunwick: The workers’ story. London: Lawrence and Wishart.
Images
1, image of Tarsem Singh
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-47853718
2, Silent march image
The Times, 1968. Some of the thousands of Sikhs marching along Cannock Road, Wolverhampton, yesterday, on their way to present their protest at the town hall. 5 February, p. [unspecified].
3, ‘Here to Stay’ Spring 1981 edition about the New Cross fire 1981
UAF/4/1 Campaign and communication material, Bishopsgate Institute, London.
4, Nasira Begum demonstration poster –
GB 3228 Nasira Begum files- Steve Cohen solicitor – Tandana files Manchester library Archives
5, Anwar Ditta
GB 3228 .028/ 01/27, Anwar Ditta file, Tandana files Manchester library Archives
6, Virginity testing
Rozenberg, J. (2022) A long history of virginity testing, A long history of virginity testing – by Joshua Rozenberg. Available at: https://rozenberg.substack.com/p/a-long-history-of-virginity-testing.
Ali R Din is a PhD researcher and visiting lecturer in Social and Cultural History at Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, specialising in postcolonial British Asian migration and antiracism activism. Ali’s work uncovers the untold histories of resistance, community organising, and the everyday experiences of racism in post-war Britain. As a social activist and writer, Ali is committed to challenging anti-Muslim narratives, racial inequality, and gender-based violence, both through academic research and public storytelling to bring marginalised histories to the forefront and explore how the past continues to shape our present. You can follow their work at www.britishbrownhistory.co.uk.
If you’d like to contribute to the Research Spotlight series, please write to Aanchal Vij (Aanchal.vij [at] bloomsbury [dot] com) or Paige Domantey (paige.domantey [at] bloomsbury [dot] com) with your idea.