Orbit Bin Liners letter to Bernie Grant

About this item

This is a letter dated 5 March 1986 from Orbital Plastics Limited to Bernie Grant, then leader of the Haringey Council. The letter responds to the Council's decision to purchase black refuse sacks by promoting a new product made from both black and white polythene. It highlights a supplier engaging with local government on issues touching on race and procurement.

Key points:
– The letter was sent by Andrew Fry, Sales Executive at Orbital Plastics Limited, based in London.
– It references a ‘much-publicised’ decision by Haringey Council to purchase black refuse sacks.
– Orbital Plastics promotes a refuse sack made from a mixture of black and white polythene.
– The company frames their product as a step towards ‘racial harmony.’
– A sample refuse sack was enclosed with the letter.

Bernie Grant was a pioneering figure in Black British local government and anti-racist politics during the 1980s. This letter reflects the intersections of race, local government procurement policies, and symbolic gestures towards racial harmony, issues that were central to Grant’s leadership in Haringey, one of the first councils to assert Black British identity and rights in public services.

Source note: The OCR transcript is generally clear, though some formatting and punctuation irregularities are present. The phrase ‘Black Refuse Sacks’ and the use of exclamation marks suggest a tone of emphasis by the sender.