Back to Politics: Black Sections, the First Black MPs, and the Parliamentary Black Caucus
The Struggle for Black MPs
Atkin’s suspension and its impact on her ability to seek election to the House of Commons, was part of a wider attack on Black Sections members and left leaning members in the Labour Party during Kinnock’s leadership. Russel Proffitt was almost prevented from standing in the 1987 election despite securing public support as Lewisham’s Labour candidate. His candidacy was at one stage vetoed due to his having worked with others to secure an all-Black shortlist of candidates, in line with Black Sections’ efforts to secure Black representation in Parliament. This controversy no doubt undermined his chances of victory however, and he sadly failed to win the seat in 1987.
The 1987 general election was, however, historic for a number of reasons. It proved to be the third consecutive victory for Margaret Thatcher and the Conservative party, and the second landslide victory against Labour.
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This document contains papers presented at the 1990 World Conference on Reparations to Africa and Africans in the Diaspora, outlining the legal basis, evidence, precedents, and broader implications of reparations claims for slavery and colonial exploitation. It is useful for understanding Bernie Grant’s campaign and the theme of reparations by providing detailed historical context, moral arguments, and international precedents that frame the demand for justice and compensation beyond financial aid.
More significantly it was this election that saw the first Black MPs elected to parliament: Bernie Grant for Tottenham, Diane Abbott for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, Keith Vaz for Leicester East and Paul Boateng for Brent South. However, with Atkin ousted from the Party, the group of the first Black MPs elected to the House of Commons, was four instead of what had been a possible five; a significant victory for Black Sections and their drive from more Black representation in politics. Grant, the first out of this group to be announced on election night, won on a staunchly anti-racist campaign, having stated that: “the only people who can represent Black people are Black people”. His election was celebrated as a win for Black communities in Britain and across the globe, as highlighted in a congratulatory letter from Kingsley Abrams, Black Sections’ National Secretary wrote to Grant shortly after his election. This letter, and the work of Black Sections, indicates the great collective drive that went into achieving this historic election. Although each had widespread support across their constituencies, the ongoing campaigning for representation orchestrated by Black Sections contributed to the election of these first black MP’s of modern times, with many black voters participating in elections for the first time. The election was also recognised as significant internationally, including by the Congressional Black Caucus in the US, the chairman of which wrote to Grant to congratulate him.
There was further hope that there would soon be additional Black representation in Parliament. In 1989 during selection for a parliamentary by-election candidate in Vauxhall, Haringey councillor Martha Osamor emerged as the favourite. Osamor, alongside other Black Sections members Linda Bellos, Marc Wadsworth and Russell Proffitt all vied for the vacancy and were all selected by local wards. Black Sections threw its full weight behind the demand for a black candidate, as the Vauxhall seat, neighbouring Brixton, was a constituency with a large number of Black residents. Diane Abbott, as a Black Sections member and only Black woman MP at this time, was quoted as saying “Black voters will be expecting a Black candidate to be selected, the Labour Party must not let them down”. But despite having obtained the largest amount of support and community backing, Osamor was removed by the Labour leadership, and after a revised selection process, and the seat was given to Kate Hoey, the less popular white candidate. The Labour leadership sought to justify her removal with assaults on Osamor’s character. Deputy leader Hattersley, labelled Osamor as “immature” and presented this as a legitimate reason for her removal. There were also spurious allegations about her misappropriating funds, but no credible evidence was ever provided on this. The entire debacle caused outrage within Black Sections and beyond, as the caucus argued the constituency, with a large Black community, required a representative MP. As Narendra Makanji and Grant outlined in a Press Statement in May of 1989, the Party’s failure to select a Black candidate in Vauxhall was, for Black Sections, “the final insult”. The statement continued: “It is more than clear to us that the Labour Party’s NEC does not want more Black members of Parliament. We cannot allow this situation to continue”. Against the advice of the Labour Party Whips, Grant defied convention by voicing his concerns on the floor of the House of Commons about the Vauxhall debacle, and in his 1989 MP’s Report presented to the Tottenham Labour Party, Grant included the Vauxhall by-election as one of the most pressing matters of that year, lamenting that “The Labour Party NEC acted, in my view, in a very undemocratic manner”. In addition, Grant highlighted the treatment of both Osamor and Atkin as indication that there was “no room for Black women in parliament”.
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This document is an MP's report from the Bernie Grant Archive, detailing his parliamentary career, activism, and contributions as one of the first black MPs in modern Britain. It is useful for understanding Bernie Grant’s pivotal role in advocating for racial justice, international solidarity, and community development, highlighting his lasting impact on politics and social issues both locally and globally.
The ruling National Executive Committee of the Labour Party, throughout Black Sections’ existence, was quite public in disparaging Black Sections and those who were involved or affiliated with the caucus, articulated clearly by a statement in March 1987“deploring” the “separatist action” of Black Sections and outlined that endorsement of the caucus by party members would result in action being taken against them. After the fourth ‘no’ vote to recognise Black Sections during the Labour Party conference in Autumn 1989, Makanji, then Black Sections chair, stated that the caucus would continue their fight for recognition, despite the leaderships’ insistence against it. Noting that “there is all to play for between now and next year”, Makanji, Grant and other senior leaders began a focus on Scotland and its notable Asian population, in an effort to mobilise these communities in time for the next Labour Conference. After many years of resistance to what it viewed as racial ‘Separatism’ and hard left politics, the Labour Party facilitated the creation of the Black Socialist Society as an alternative, which provided white members the ability to vote and influence the group. It was included in the Party’s constitution in 1993 and lasted up until 2007 when it was reformed into the BAME Society. Although there is not yet a comparative caucus to Black Sections, its work and indeed the pioneering role of Grant, helped to inspire the creation of the Bernie Grant Leadership Programme . Launched by Dawn Butler MP in 2019, the Programme seeks to address the ongoing underrepresentation of Black, Asian and other ethnic minority members at all levels of the Labour Party.
