‘Standing on their shoulders’ – join Islington’s Windrush Day 2021 celebrations

This year, in a first for Islington, on Tuesday 22 June the Windrush Day flag will be hoisted above Islington Town Hall.

The flag raising ceremony will mark 73 years since the Empire Windrush ship arrived at Tilbury docks in London in 1948, carrying hundreds of people from the Caribbean, invited by the British Government to make a new life in Britain and perform a vital role in helping to re-build the country after the Second World War.

This large influx of Caribbean labour created the opportunity to rebuild Britain and is widely acknowledged as providing the foundation for many to ‘Stand on the shoulders’ of the Windrush Generation to rebuild the nation.

Islington will mark the event with a minute’s silence to remember those that are no longer with us, but have contributed so much to our country. Residents can watch the ceremony live from the council's Facebook channel from 10.30am on Tuesday, 22 June, and the video link will be shared after the ceremony for general viewing.

In the evening, an online event ‘Windrush Then and Now: A Day to Reflect and Celebrate’, hosted by the council's Black History Working Group, will explore the experiences of the Windrush Generation arriving in the UK and reflect on ‘Then and now’, looking at how has life changed in the UK since the Windrush Generations came to the UK.

Acclaimed broadcaster, political activist, oral historian and musician Alex Pascall, OBE will speak about coming to the UK and how that journey has shaped Black Caribbean culture as we know it today.

Islington Heritage and Libraries have also produced a booklist called ‘100 Caribbean books that made us’, to explore the history and culture of the Caribbean experience and the stories that have shaped Caribbean culture worldwide from music, food and poetry to political activism.

On Monday, 5 July, Nubian Jak, in collaboration with Islington Council and the Whittington Hospital, will unveil a statue entitled ‘Nursing a Nation’ dedicated to the tireless work of Windrush and Commonwealth NHS nurses and midwives who answered the call and came to ‘the Motherland’.

The statue stands 7ft tall and 7ft wide representing the seven decades that Black nurses have and continue to support the NHS. 40,000 nurses and midwives from around the Commonwealth came to the UK from 1948 - 1973 to help the fledging NHS, which was facing problems recruiting enough staff. The dedication and service of these nurses was exemplary; it has been said that without their contribution, the NHS would have collapsed.

Last week a single called ‘I have a song – The Remix’ written by Nubian Jak, with appearances by Eric Roberson and the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir, was released to help raise funds for the statue. The single is available on iTunes and all other platforms.

A book ‘Nursing a Nation’ is being released on Saturday, 10 July to accompany the statue. Nubian Jak Community Trust is collaborating with Islington Council, Islington Black History Working Group, and other partners to deliver workshops and create resources for teachers which will be used to help teach Islington school children the importance of the Windrush Generation. They will also hold storytelling sessions and other educational Windrush events at libraries, providing copies of the book in every library across the borough.

Both the statue and the book have been endorsed by Her Majesty the Queen, and the book’s introduction includes a letter of support from the Queen. The Nubian Jak Community Trust is a community organization and the largest diversity plaque and statue scheme in the world.

Amy Buxton-Jennings, Islington Council’s Partnerships Director Fairer Together, said: “I am extremely proud to acknowledge and celebrate the contribution of the Windrush Generation to Islington, London and the UK as a whole. My mum and grandmother came here from Jamaica in 1954 and both were teachers in London’s East End.

"Like so many others, their contribution to building world class public services was incredible given the difficult context they faced. We must not only give thanks but keep doing our very best to continue their legacy.”

Created in 2018, Windrush Day began to celebrate the rich diversity that Commonwealth citizens brought to the country and to mark the major contribution they and their descendants have made to British society, culture and the economy.