[16][17], Tribune described the march as "the largest mass movement for racial justice on British soil at the time", but also noted that "journalists stationed in the offices of Fleet Street chanted monkey noises at the protestors down below. As a survivor, I feel triggered by these discussions and the furore around it is irritating because all its doing is upsetting a whole bunch of people - again, winding up the Black community - again, only for the matter to get dropped again, he continued. How the Princess of Wales recreated her 2006 outfit from Prince William's Sandhurst graduation EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Prince William's potentially awkward visit to homelessness charity. Initial rumours of a racist attack carried out by far right groups were too easily overlooked by police, it has been claimed. Word spread that it was a targeted attack but fire forensics ruled out the allegation. Forty years on, and for the first time on British television, the story of the fire and its aftermath are being told in Uprising, a three-part BBC One series which begins tonight at 9pm. Join Facebook to connect with Anthony Cross and others you may know. Username. Facebook gives people the power to. Police chiefs have been accused of failing to fully investigate the confession of a jailed murderer who revealed how a house fire started 40 years ago, killing 13 young black partygoers. 1 He held the office of Deputy Lieutenant (D.L.) Already serving a life sentence for two murders, including that of his pregnant 22-year-old girlfriend April Sheridan, Smithyman gave a chilling account during 40 taped interviews of how the fire started. And Im still in therapy because Ive only just realised how much the fire affected me. Feelings of anger in the black community were compounded by the fact that neither the Queen nor the government of the day, under Margaret Thatcher, offered formal condolences to the families of the New Cross fire victims. [13], The Action Committee organised a "Black People's Day of Action" on 2 March, when 20,000 people marched over a period of eight hours from Fordham Park to Hyde Park carrying placards that bore statements including: "Thirteen Dead, Nothing Said", "No Police Cover-Up" and "Blood Aga Run If Justice Na Come". On Sunday, January 18, 1981, thirteen black youths attending a birthday party in Deptford, South London was killed in an alleged racially-motivated house fire. This is all much to his annoyance because Smithymans confession has been in the public domain for years. A series of public memorials have been installed naming the fourteen young men, women, and children who lost their lives as a result of the firethese include plaques on 439 New Cross Road and Lewisham Town Hall, and a memorial in Fordham Park. There was a significant amount of racial tension across London. About me. Post Coronavirus lockdown I have returned to seeing clients face to face but am continuing to . Artists like Linton Kwesi Johnson, Benjamin Zephaniah, and Johnny Osbourne also wrote poems and songs, telling the story of the massacre, and condemning the silence which followed it. When 48 people died in the Stardust disco fire in Dublin, Ireland, in the early hours of 14 February that year, the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and the Queen offered their immediate condolences. Id travelled down from Rugby [in Warwickshire] and wanted to hear rastaman music, he says with alaugh. Survivor season 41 - everything we know about the cast, 1981 New Cross Fire wasnt a racist attack, survivor says, he appeared in a 2020 documentary co-produced by Nadine White about the Black Peoples Day of Action march, Extra 20% off selected fashion and sportswear at Very, Up to 20% off and extra perks with Booking.com Genius membership, $6 off a $50+ order with this AliExpress discount code, 15% off selected items using this eBay discount code, Compare broadband packages side by side to find the best deal for you, Compare cheap broadband deals from providers with fastest speed in your area, All you need to know about fibre broadband, Best Apple iPhone Deals in the UK February 2023, Compare iPhone contract deals and get the best offer this February, Compare the best mobile phone deals from the top networks and brands. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. Corroborated eyewitness accounts placed a white man in an Austin Princess vehicle at the New Cross Fire scene. Wed walk to school and see graffiti of black men hanging on lamp posts. Sir Collins, who lost his son Steven in the fire, produced a whole album in tribute to the thirteen young Black Britonsthe album features Stevens voice, recorded when he was much younger. "We know it [the fire] was not an accident. After being told of what Smithyman had claimed, she told the MoS: 'The case has never been investigated properly. Lindsay Birbeck (Image: Lancashire Police). His other roles included the leads in HBO's first ever mini-series . And that was when I decided I've got to move, I've got to get out of here.". We will carefully consider any new information.'. Since the article was published over the weekend, social media has been awash with speculation about the cause of the fire while Wayne continues to receive numerous phone calls from campaigners celebrating what has been regarded as a long-awaited uncovering of truth. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the infamous New Cross fire in Lewisham, south London where 13 Black youth died at a birthday party in what many believed was an arson attack motivated by racism. The New Cross Massacre exposed the indifference and disdain with which government and the media have treated the loss of Black lives. An assembly of the people consisting of five hundred black Britons was formed to investigate the killings. Our assessments, publications and research spread knowledge, spark enquiry and aid understanding around the world. His aunt Armza Ruddock, the mother of Paul and Yvonne, described hearing a bang. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Anthony Bale is an English medievalist.. Tram 1h. Mr Haynes, who jumped from a window, suffered life-changing injuries including 140 skin grafts from first degree burns. And he went and kissed his father and that was the last we saw of my son. The verdict was disputed by those who believed that the fire had been the result of a racist arson attack, and the conduct of the Inner South London Coroner, who oversaw the inquest, caused particular dismay, exposing systemic flaws in the investigation of controversial deaths. [2] The initial police suspicion was that the party had been firebombed, either as a revenge attack or in an attempt to stop the noise; there was also an alternative theory that a fight had broken out, from which the blaze emanated. The Black Peoples Day of Action was organised for Monday 2 March thatyear. [1] Nefertiti Gayle, Every Time Me memba (no date) reproduced in Beverley Bryan, Stella Dadzie and Suzanne Scafe, The Heart of the Race: Black Womens Lives in Britain, London, 1985, pp. He has published on inequality and the inner city in Britain, and his article Truth, Justice, and Expertise in 1980s Britain: the Cultural Politics of the New Cross Massacre appears inHistory Workshop Journal issue 91, where it is available on free access. The fire and the protests that followed were part of the Steve McQueen co-directed television documentary series Uprising shown on BBC One in July 2021. He believes in some ways they have been helped by the passage of time - due to advances in forensic science they have been able to pin-point the exact location of the fire when it started (by an. Witnesses stated that he threw a Molotov cocktail into the house party. Mr Haynes told BBC London what he remembered of the night. [40], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}512833N 00149W / 51.4757N 0.0304W / 51.4757; -0.0304, Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 13:53, "Inquest begins into 14 victims of 1981 fire", "Report says New Cross fire was not race attack", "Did the New Cross fire create a black British identity? The people who know what really happened are already dying out and are going to take that to their grave. Our colleague, Andrew Behan, has researched this young man:Anthony Alexander Berbeck was born on 17 August 1962 in Lewisham, the son of Wilfred P. Berbeck and Cynthia L. Berbeck ne Whyte. Forty years on, it is vital that we continue to remember the story of the New Cross Massacre. Email or phone: Password: . London, 06 May 04 A mural has been revealed in honour of 14 young black people killed by a fire in south London 41 years ago. Anthony Cross. Facebook. In early April, an estimated 943 peoples were stopped and searched by the police under Sus laws, an addendum to the 1824 Vagrancy Act, and 188 black youths were arrested. A forensic report produced for the Met Police in 2011 ruled out a firebomb attack, concluding that the blaze started when someone in the house set an armchair alight. Twenty-seven others were seriously injured. I don't think so. The comments below have been moderated in advance. When the Black community locks shop and puts up a wall of silence regarding what goes on within our community - nothing comes out. Between 5:45 and 5:55 a.m. on Sunday 18 January 1981, a fire broke out in the front room of 439 New Cross Road in the London Borough of Lewisham. Anthony Birbeck is on Facebook. As the clock ticked past midnight on 18 January 1981, a house party in New Cross, south-east London, was just getting started. Hilarious snaps reveal workers who don't have time for red tape, Wife is shocked after husband of 15 years asks for permission to have an affair: 'I don't know what to do', Do not sell or share my personal information. Would the same happen if it had been 13 young white children? Michael Smithyman, who had been jailed for killing his pregnant girlfriend, was the subject of a police report submitted to the Home Office and was reinterviewed by an elite Scotland Yard unit in 1993. In the early morning on Sunday 18 January 1981, a fire broke out at 439 New Cross Road in the London Borough of Lewisham. On 1 March, the Daily Mail falsely reported that several of the fire survivors were arrested and would face severe charges in what black Britons saw as an attempt to undermine the demonstration and the black communitys inquest into the house fire. [2] The coroner said that the fire was probably started deliberately by one of the guests, but as he could not be sure of this, he returned an open verdict.[10]. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. 20072023 Blackpast.org. Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. [8] The inquest into the deaths of the 13 teenagers, began on 21 April 1981. Many black Britons viewed those acts the states retaliation for the Black Peoples Day of Action demonstration. I know this area although I am from the midlands and sympathise entirely but was unfamiliar with its history and significance thank you for the information. We were young kids, all together and having a great time. 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