Black Bin Liners, and other lies

Black Bin Liners, and other lies

There are many examples of false Press statements regarding the work and policies of Grant, Haringey Council, and members of the so-called ‘Loony Left’, as the Bernie Grant Archive collection demonstrates. One of the most infamous such mistruths spread by the media was published by The Mail on Sunday in March 1986, titled ‘The racist bin liner is blacked’. This article claimed that Grant, using his authority as Council Leader, had outlawed the purchasing of black dustbin liners as he perceived them as racist. In a letter to the editor of the newspaper, Grant outlined the negative impact of such stories, not only on him but on the wider Black community who are “not well served by the national press”. For Grant personally, each exaggerated or untrue story triggered a swathe of hate mail. However, the black bin liner story also garnered a humorous outcome. One particularly entrepreneurial sales executive at Orbital Plastics saw the opportunity to offer Grant a solution to the ‘much-publicised decision’ to ban black bin-liners, boasting that his company was ‘one step ahead in the field of racial harmony’ by producing a bin-liner that was black and white. According to Grant, this was one of many such offers for progressive alternatives offered!

Other stories included the allegation that Grant had banned the nursery rhyme “Ba Ba Black sheep” in schools, that he was obliging schools to teach “Creole”, and that he had plans to build an African Village in Tottenham.

When Bernie Grant was finally elected to Parliament in June 1987, his victory was seen by many as triumph for a local community over the malign influence of the local and national press. This no doubt explains the joyous scenes at Tottenham’s Selby Centre where the election count was held – and which were televised nationally.