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100 years
ago the thriving port South Shields attracted tradesmen and seamen
of many nationalities; Yemen, Aden, Somalia, African, Indian and Malaysian.
Foreign
seamen had come to South Shields in the 19th Century and were used
as cheap labour on the ship, usually as firemen and stokers.
1919-1930
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| South Asian seamen or Lascar,
circa 1920 |
During
WWI, foreign labour had been used to keep the Merchant Fleet running,
while British seamen were drafted into the Royal Navy.
In
the years leading up to and including WWI there were almost 2000
members of the black and minority ethnic community living in South
Shields.
They
were to represent the first significant Muslim communities to settle
in Britain.
After
WWI foreign (mainly Arab) seamen found their position was changed
from that of being welcome, to now being seen as unwanted guests.
The
demobilisation of white British seamen and the onset of the economic
depression between the wars resulted in declining employment and
intense competition for jobs.
Racial
unrest
1919
saw the first serious street violence and racial unrest in areas
inhabited by foreign seamen, with attacks on Arab Boarding Houses
and cafes.
Throughout
the 1920's and 1930's popular feeling in the town seems to be firmly
against the Arabs.
A
constant stream of letters to the Shields Gazette on the subject
of the Arab seamen in the town shows the strength of hostility and
racial prejudice.
It
was around this time the 'Minority Movement' a left wing group of
black and white workers formed to challenge the National Union of
Seamen and the Shipping Federation, who were under-representing
and failing to defend the welfare of foreign workers.
The Mill Dam Riots
Throughout
1930, the Minority Movement held public meetings at the Mill Dam
to campaign against a new rota system which they felt discriminated
against the Arabs.
Violence over the dispute erupted in North Shields on April 29,
1930 when 13 Somalis were brought over from South Shields to sign
on as Firemen on a ship.
A large
crowd of white seamen tried to stop them reaching the Union Office.
The Somalis were then attacked and, despite drawing their knives,
were severely beaten.
The
Arab Riot
On
2 August 1930, South Shields was to gain national notoriety at the
time of the so-called 'Arab Riot' at Mill Dam on the Quay.
In
East and West Holborn, South Shields, the Arabs had their own community,
cafes and boarding houses.
Rumours
circulated round Shields that the Arabs used bribery to get jobs
on the ships, thereby "robbing" white seamen of jobs.
The
Minority Movement
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| Police arrest an Arab man
at Mill Dam August 2, 1930 |
A large
mob of white seamen then roamed the waterfront hunting for any Arabs
and foreigners.
A number of Arab workers gathered outside the Shipping Foundation
Offices at the Mill Dam to hear rousing speeches from the leaders
of the Minority Movement.
Trouble began about noon when four white men were hired for the
steamer Etheralda, and expecting trouble, the police were drafted
into the area.
Ali
Hamid, one of the jobless Arabs was heard to shout "They work,
but there is no work for the black man".
There
are conflicting reports about what triggered the resulting chaos,
but there was soon furious fighting between a group of white seamen
and the Arab crowds.
Police
drew their truncheons and charged, only to be met by a hail of stones
and shouts of abuse.
Once
among the crowd, the Arabs drew their knives, stabbing four Policemen.
The Police waded in with their truncheons as the riot spilled over
into nearby Holborn, injuring dozens of innocent bystanders.
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| Arabs 'rioters'
were imprisoned and then deported |
On
Monday morning, the public gallery in the Magistrates was full,
with an estimated crowd of 1,000 outside.
Six
white men and 20 Arabs were brought from the cells and accused of
causing an affray or riot. A collection of knives, sticks, chair
legs and other weapons was displayed, before they were released
on bail of £10 each.
A petition
signed by 500 South Shields Arabs was sent to the Home Secretary
to voice their grievances, but all to no avail.
Little
was done for the Arabs; scores of them had to be admitted to Harton
Workhouse as their money ran out. Nearly 100 Arabs, not implicated
in the riots, were deported.
On November 20, after a two day trial at Durham Assizes, all the
Arab defendants were given sentences of hard labour, ranging from
three to 16 months. After serving their sentences they were to be
deported.
The
white Minority Movement organisers got eight months each.
Divide and Rule
The
so-called Race Riot also revealed the solidarity between conscientious
white seamen and their black colleagues. That solidarity was a threat
to the ship owners and unions, who favoured 'divide and rule'.
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| During
WWII, servicemen's Boarding Houses were ethnically segregated |
During
WWII, many of the 3,000 plus Shields seamen killed were black, though
there is little recognition of this on the town's war memorials.
By
the 1940's, the black community of Shields began to widen their
employment opportunities, opening cafes and restaurants.
There
were also a few other settlers who worked as door-to-door peddlers.
Improper
behaviour
In
1945, allegations were made of attempts by the police to drive away
the custom of black owned business.
False
claims of undesirable activities such as drugs and prostitution
were made against the cafes proprietors.
Cafe
owners were regularly subjected to racial and physical abuse.
Frank
Lambert, a local solicitor, said at the time:
"The coloured population felt itself victimised and hounded
out."
Short
of evidence, the police eventually tried to prosecute two Indian
men in South Shields on the grounds of permitting prostitutes to
assemble in the area. They were fined £5 each.
The
two men appealed and the hearing was stopped charging all court
costs to the police.
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