This film is part of Free
A Safe Place to Be
Racism in Spitalfields reaches crisis point in the 70s as the National Front attack the local Bangladeshi community
Overview
This episode of Home from Home explores the history of racism in the East End, its roots and how it led to riots on Brick Lane in the late 70s when the National Front attacked the Bangladeshi community living there. Known as the Battle of Brick Lane, the attack was fuelled by the GLC’s ‘Ghetto Plan’ to house Bangladeshis in designated estates. Considered safer than areas such as Stepney and Mile End, Spitalfields became home to many Bangladeshis new to London. Living and working in very poor conditions they faced racism on a daily basis.
Related
Spitalfields Market Spitalfields Market
Amateur film 1966 1 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
London's greengrocers celebrate with friends and family as well as members of the public in this film from 1966
Market Trends in the Year of Rising Prices Market Trends in the Year of Rising Prices
Amateur film 1969 8 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
From Petticoat Lane to Portobello Road, London's street markets are always full of life.
Marriage of Miss Rose Carmel and Mr. Solly Gerschcowit Marriage of Miss Rose Carmel and Mr. Solly Gerschcowit
Non-Fiction 1925 3 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
Follow the happy couple from the family shop on Brick Lane to a garden party serenaded by the San Diego Dance Band
Petticoat Lane Petticoat Lane
Non-Fiction 1903 3 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
Join the Sunday morning crowds at the famous East End market, home of London's rag trade.
London's £2,000,000 Market London's £2,000,000 Market
Non-Fiction 1926 1 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
Pomp and ceremony as the Lord Mayor lays the foundation stone for the extension of Spitalfields Market
Soup Kitchen Soup Kitchen
Amateur film 1934 4 mins Silent Location: Spitalfields
A rare glimpse inside the Soup Kitchen for the Jewish Poor in the East End during the early 1930s.
China O'Brien: The Reunion China O'Brien: The Reunion
Documentary 2024 60 mins
Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton and Keith Cooke reunite three decades on from the groundbreaking martial arts classic.
Women in Action Panel Discussion Women in Action Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 28 mins
Action Xtreme - the UK's leading action film studio - hosts this panel discussion with four leading women in action cinema - Soo Cole, Jo Rolison, Jadey Duffield and Ioanna Karavela.
Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 24 mins
Daniel Kokotajlo talks to Nia Childs about Starve Acre, his folk horror about a couple digging deep into grief in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales.
Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 30 mins
Sky Peals director Moin Hussain and lead actor Faraz Ayub talk to Tomisin Adepeju about their magic realist drama.
Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell
Documentary 2024 42 mins
Documentary exploring the BFI National Archive’s role in rediscovering and remastering the early films of Michael Powell.
Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels
Short documentary 2024 12 mins
Bryony Dixon, curator of silent film at the BFI national archive, explores the origins of a series of comic travelogues, and Michael Powell's involvement in making them.