TAKING A STAND — Chronicleworld on Blacks in Britain Hits Twenty-Five Years

“I am convinced that, despite all the negative race-based marginalisation, the ability to mix, blend, change, radicalise, reinvent and serve up something distinctive in a hostile urban environment is at the core of “being Black in Britain”. – Professor Thomas L Blair
© July-August 2022

This is a vital moment for Black Britons of Caribbean and African heritage. People are determined to make change a reality. They are aiming to forge their futures – in housing, education and jobs, in urban renewal, health and wellbeing — and in fighting injustice locally and globally.

The Chronicle World weblog is the UK’s leading independent online news magazine on Black Britain, Afro-Europe and the Diaspora. Our journal is part of their struggle for access to internet power. Our roots and rap draw on the best West African griot and Caribbean calypsonian traditions.

Founded in 1997 by sociologist, town planner and cyber-scholar Professor Thomas L Blair, the Weblog is seen as central to the narrative of Black people in modern societies from the second half of the 20th century.

Themes showcase achievements, values, impact, advocacy and creativity

Popular commentaries cover the Black urban crisis, the Black Lives Matter protests Black History Month and the assertive actions of ordinary folks. In-depth articles deal with the impact of BREXIT (the UK leaving the European Union) on immigration.  

Special studies explore the disastrous mortality effects of the Covid pandemic on Black health workers in the NHS and care homes.  We have recognised the challenges Afro-Ukrainians face in war. We have urged Black women rectors to end the legacy of slavery in Scottish universities.

Our readers benefit from our trustworthy reporting.

Opinion pieces cover diverse reparations issues. One is the historical trans-shipment of Africans to slavery in the colonial Caribbean and America. Another is compensating the inspired, resilient Caribbean women and men who came to serve post-war Britain’s fledgling health care system and ailing transport industries.

Backed by hard research, the Chronicleworld articles sound the alarm when Black communities’ role in public affairs and the workplace are threatened. Referencing hundreds of authoritative resources, we also chart their rising status in the UK equality charts.

We’ve reported on the influential news breakers shaping the narratives around pivotal moments. We have also extended homage to the early pioneers that sowed the seeds of popular protest and political activity.

Our commentaries covered the high-profile/high-risk strategies of rights advocates who refused to play by the authority’s rules in a rigged game. Witness the vanguard intellectuals at the 1945 Pan African Congress in Manchester: W E B Du Bois, George Padmore, Kwame Nkrumah and Jomo Kenyatta.

And we recognised that the Black freedom forces were gathering in Britain in 1958. Black workers and youth were clearing hate-filled, riotous white, working-class “Teddy Boys” from the streets of Notting Hill. They were forcing the nation to see the interlocking effects of discrimination in obsolescent housing, low-wage jobs and educational exclusion.

The West Indian Standing Conference rallied the diverse community organisations into one. The Notting Hill Carnival pioneer and activist Claudia Jones and parliamentarian Lord David Pitt aimed to protect civil rights.

In addition, the radical student-led Committee of African Organisations mobilised West African groups in Britain, protested against colonial rule and served as a training ground for future political leaders. Borne on the winds of change, their destiny was to close the gap between Black aspirations and achievements.

Why “Black”? — and Proud

Black Britain is one extraordinary microcosm of society. As I progressed in thought and writing, I realised the difference between uncaring corporate Britain and a community suffering racial inequality in a hostile environment.

Therefore, the Chronicleworld is “Black” in the sense that it speaks to the problems and prospects of the peoples of African descent and heritage in Britain. Moreover, it adds a voice to their filial relations in Afro-Europe and the diaspora in the Caribbean, North and South Americas.

Truth is, the Chronicleworld is not “black” because of who wrote it, or because there are Black people in it, or because it’s about “black” things. It’s the feelings. It has a certain inspiring style.

Not unusual, this filial connectedness is a common feature of every “ethnic press” in or directed toward kith and kin in Britain. Prime online and print examples include The Voice “Britain’s Favourite Black Newspaper” as well as The Muslim News, The Irish Post, The Jewish Chronicle and T-vine (Turkish).

By editing and publishing the Chronicleworld over twenty-five years, I have recognised that the passage of Black Britons from colonial slavery to freedom and emigration to stretching their muscles and minds in metropolitan London, their Citadel of Modernism, is truly trans-national and millennial.

Aware of the changing times, we Chronicle the evolving mindset, perceptions and culture of aspiring Black Britons. Our principle has always been clearly focused. There is a wealth of knowledge and experience within Black communities. If used in creative goal-directed ways, they can achieve their desired goals. How to do this is the defining problem of the 21st century

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Thanks to the strength and innovation of our journalism
readers linger on content and return repeatedly

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We will be taking a break for a while but if you share our ideas and mission then enjoy digging deep into our full catalogue here online. Our related print and ebooks can be found through the British Library and its Social Welfare Portal followings via:

For print and born-digital works
 Explore the British Library catalog https://Bl.uk catalog  insert Thomas l Blair

For digital-born only works
 Explore British Library Social Welfare Portal https:// Bl.uk social-welfare-portal, click social welfare, insert Thomas L Blair and or Editions Blair

Weblog https://chronicleworld.co.uk