Remember Trayvon Martin

Remember Trayvon Martin the lad going about his lawful business. Trayvon was carrying sweets and a soft drink for his brother.

It’s not a Black and White thing, it’s a right and wrong thing.

In an ideal world young Trayvon wouldn’t have died. But the world we live in isn’t an ideal world. So let’s hope that his untimely and unnecessary death has a significant and long lasting impact on the United States of America. The world leader in many issues and yet a third world country in many respects especially those concerning ethnicity. God Bless America and let’s pray for Trayvon, and also pray for his family and friends who now suffer his departure.

Black and White Right and Wrong

"It's not a Black and White THING - It's a RIGHT and WRONG thing", well said

Stephen Lawrence

It's wonderful news to hear that two men are to face trial for the 1993 murder of Black Teenager Stephen Lawrence. The death of Stephen Lawrence without a criminal case being brought by the State; has always been a blight on the justice system of the United Kingdom. It may be 18 years after the event, but the young man who was stabbed to death allegedly, simply because he was black, deserves the Justice of a trial for the accused.

I suspect that the trial will be a fair and equitable affair.

Everyone will have equal chance to convince those that sit in judgement that certain things did or did not happen and that certain people were either there or not. I suspect that all in all, the fairness of the process can be regarded as something that was not afforded to Stephen Lawrence when he was chosen to be killed. On that occasion it was the worse kind of cowardice, a gang of men. It is a pity that only two of them are being brought to trial and that the whole lot of them haven't been rounded up. Nevertheless, it is a significant step forward and everyone who has been involved in bringing the prosecution, should be justifiably proud.

No pre-judgement, no unfair trial, just a trial of the facts by a jury of your peers and if you did it then you done it, and it's as simple as that. And if you didn't do it, then you have nothing to worry about as an advocate will plead your innocence on your behalf and thereby convince those that sit in judgement to let you free.

Stephen Lawrence
Born 13 September 1974
Age when murdered 18
Status A Level Student
Date of Murder 22 April 1993
Method of MurderStabbed
Location of Murder Bus stop in Eltham, South East London

The following quote is cited as being attributed to the mother or Stephen Lawrence "...had he been given the chance to survive maybe he would have been the one to bridge the gap between black and white because he didn't distinguish between black or white. He saw people as people." Chapter 4, Stephen Lawrence Enquiry 4.7 Doreen Lawrence ended her statement with these words:-

The Thin Line

My lack of understanding regarding racism was matched by my inability to separate the term ‘Apartheid’ from Africa. Well, the two go hand-in-hand don’t they? Or so I thought until my academic horizons were raised.

RR Davies in his work “Owain Glyn Dwr – Prince of Wales” explains the gulf that existed between the Welsh and the English in terms of Apartheid (p. 140). During the Welsh Rebellion that was led by Owain ap Gruffudd Fychan ap Gruffudd (Owain Glyn Dwr), the Penal Laws were passed by the English Parliament in 1401-02. These laws served to widen the significant gulf that already existed between the peoples of these neighbouring nations. The Penal Laws intended that no Welshman could hold any office of importance, or register as a political official or representative of a borough in Wales. Nor could he buy land in the boroughs of Wales and the border areas between Wales and England. No Englishman could be tried for a crime by a Welshman. The Penal Laws defined the Welsh and the English as two different nations with the Welsh regarded in law as the inferior of the two peoples. The stated inferiority meant that an Englishman, who felt that he had been wronged by a Welshman, could turn to the Penal Laws for redress. This was colonialism long before the mad rush for Africa.

The term ‘Apartheid’ may have been in popular use many centuries later, but the Penal Laws and the time preceding and following these laws are evidence of the existence of Apartheid in Wales before and during the 15C.

This Apartheid also led to suspicion and to men of worth losing their role in society due to the poor application of the Penal Laws. Legal interpretation can always be hazy, and I understand that you should not confuse the law with justice. There are significant examples of injustices suffered by the Welsh during this period. These injustices were replicated several hundred years later with the transportation of slaves from Africa. The west coast of Ghana was a prime departure point for the unfortunate slaves. The slaves had little in common with their new masters. Body structure, skin tone and facial recognition were all different. Many of the slaves had facial markings to aid tribal identification during close combat. It is little wonder that racism occurred as the slave trade died out and these dispossessed persons had to be fully integrated into new societies.

It was an inevitable outcome of the civilising process that the trading of slaves would cease. The end of slave trading was as inevitable, as the outcome of the people of Wales and England evolving to exist in harmony. Integration through marriage, friendships and industry bring people together and make it more difficult for fault lines to appear. Although, for Western society, events in nearby Bosnia, is evidence that these faults can occur and when they do the results can be catastrophic.

The book ‘War of the World’ by historian and author Niall Fergusson examines political violence throughout the 20C. It’s a great read, but what strikes home more than anything else, is how easily society crumbles to allow racism to take over. It is a fine line, and all too often it is crossed.

Friendship

My understanding of Racism was greatly expanded when I undertook my Masters study in social and economic science at the Department of International Politics in Aberystwyth. I suppose, like many other people, I related racism to Black Slavery.

I remember Michael Appiah explaining to me, that the English did not bring slavery to his country. Slavery had been present for some time through tribal exchanges. Slavery was not a new phenomenon that occurred when the English arrived. No, what the English managed to do in Michael’s words was to industrialise the process.

The obvious difference in skin tone and facial structure must have led to concerns on both sides, the land of the master, and the victim.

My first introduction to racism occurred when I was eleven years of age. I had met a new friend in Secondary school and called at his home on our second day so that we could walk together. We were both from extremely poor backgrounds. Our parents could not afford the bus fare, but we lived too close to be considered for a free bus pass. It became a long walk as the winter months drew in. But this was only the second day of a new term and for me a new beginning. My grandfather has been quite rich prior to his reverse of fortune. My uncle had a university education and my father would have enjoyed the same standard of education if it had not been his desire to seek succour in the Arts.

Anyway, we were poor, this was day two and I was on my way to school. I called at the home of my new friend Glyn and was duly invited in by his Mum. As we sat in the lounge, I was offered a cup of tea which I gladly accepted. A trait for those who know me that I still have today. If you are offered a cuppa, never say ‘no’. One, it’s bad manners, and two, when you are as poor as I have been, you never know when your next cup of tea is going to come from. Especially if you are the type of person who expects a drop of fresh milk rather than the powdered type to grace the cup.

We trundled off to school and I never gave the matter a second thought. Well, why would I? Glyn was my new friend and his Mum had invited me into her home. The next day, I again called for Glyn and we set off for Queen’s High School that was at the time located in the centre of Newport Gwent near to the Westgate Hotel. Which of course is an important location for those of you who know your Welsh rebellion, and injustice history.

As we walked along, Glyn turned to me, and explained that he was now my lifelong friend and that he would be there to protect me whenever anyone ever tried to do me harm. Pretty cool statement really, as I had only known Glyn for three days.

Glyn explained that I was the first white person to ever call at his home, and therefore the first one to enter and receive hospitality from his Mum. His mother was so proud, and Glyn seen that as a bond of friendship. You see, Glyn was what we would now term ‘Mixed Race’ but in 1971 would have been referred to as a ‘Half-Caste’.

Glyn Bailey would have been my life-long friend if he had not been murdered on the streets of London in broad daylight aged 17. A gang of Asian youths had killed him because he dared to insist that a parking space was for his relative. The funeral was an extremely sad affair. Well, funerals often are. Glyn was a young man with his life ahead of him. The family were still extremely poor, and when you don’t have worldly possessions, your sense of perspective and focus rests firmly on your kin.

This Blog post is a lead-in to my current study of Welsh history and the racism that occurred during and following the Welsh revolt led by Owain Glyn Dwr. You see, Africa and Wales are not that far apart historically.

Castles and Defence

Castles are an important part of the British heritage. Imported into Britain by the Norman conquerors when after defeating Harold they established a series of earth and stone mounds known as a Motte with an outer barricaded courtyard known as a Bailey. The Normans were prolific Castle builders and one huge example was built in an astonishing 8 days. The Norman castle building took off after an uprising in the North of England and the subsequent punishment issued by the Normans that destroyed homes, livestock and land and which led to thousands upon thousands of deaths. The subsequent completion of over 500 Motte and Bailey castles gave way to stone castles as the Norman leadership strived to increase their hold on the United Kingdom. Wales in particular was known as a land of thieves and held in low esteem by the Normans. And that's what people do isn't it? Unfair judgements based on ad-hoc and usually low key experiences. Human beings are keen to judge and historically the British are as bad as any other nation. The Zulu wars from 1879 are a prime example of British opinionated superior ism. But as I come to the end of two books written by the Historian and Author Ian Knight, I can only conclude that the Africans were in many ways superior in culture, tactics and strategy. Theirs was a just cause, but unfortunately they lacked the technological advantages of evolving weaponry. And after Iswalanda the Africans were too keen to inflict further defeat without understanding the true value of a defensive area where a rifle could keep warriors with stabbing spears and cowhide shields easily at bay. Rorke's Drift was no castle but the defensive principles are in many ways the same as the Norman Motte and Bailey. Invaders establishing a safety perimeter and lording it over others. Britain in the 11th Century and Africa in the 19th.

Anyway it's great to be back and I send best wishes to all of those that check into the Blog from various parts of the World.

The photograph shows a Norman early wooden version Motte and Bailey model. The model was constructed for 15mm high war gaming soldiers. The water is made from PVA and the white area dried clear after the photograph was taken.