The Shoulders We Stand On
Have you heard of the Indian Workers’ Association? The Grunwick Strike? The Brixton Black Women’s Group? The Battle of Brick Lane? If the answer is no, you’re not alone. The Shoulders We Stand On tells the stories of ten remarkable movements, campaigns and organisations led by Black and Brown people across Britain from the sixties to the eighties that fought against racism and capitalism and impacted the way we live now.
Researcher and historian Preeti Dhillon wants us to reclaim the history that has been kept from us, and use these vital movements and inspirational moments to better understand the UK we live in today and how change happens.
There is a long and deep history of activism by Black and Brown people spanning the UK. Their stories can inspire all of us to make a difference, just as they did. The Shoulders We Stand On is a book of hope. Hope that together we can make a difference, that together we are powerful, and that we don’t have to tackle society’s challenges alone.
We’re not alone, we’ve been here before and this is the book we all need now.
Preeti Dhillon is a researcher, writer and historian. She is passionate about capturing hidden stories from oppressed and marginalised communities. Her debut book The Shoulders We Stand On: How Black and Brown people fought for change in the United Kingdom was published by Dialogue Books. It was Eastern Eye’s non-fiction book of the year. Preeti’s essay ‘How I Grew A Life’ was published in Fox & Windmill’s anthology Tales From the Kitchen, and she has written for the Byline Times, Black History Month magazine, and The Rights Collective, and was longlisted for Penguin WriteNow in 2020. She was an Independent Research Fellow with the Women’s History Network 2021-2022.
The Exiled
After packing scant possessions and countless memories, 50,000 Ugandan Asians vied for limited space in countries including Canada, India and the United Kingdom. More than 28,000 expellees from Britain’s former colony arrived in the UK and began building new lives – but their incredible stories have, until now, remained largely hidden.
Fifty years on from the exodus, The Exiled draws on first-hand interviews and testimonies, including from the author’s family, to illuminate a time of painful alienation and incredible courage. As an entire people stepped into the unknown, a global diaspora was born, and the fate of the United Kingdom changed forever.
Journeying across continents and decades, this staggering work of reportage illuminates an essential, and under-explored, chapter in post-colonial history, challenging politically expedient narratives to uncover the true fate of minorities at the end of empire.
Lucy Fulford is a journalist and author who focuses on migration and identity, often through the lens of conflict and trauma. Her debut book,The Exiled: Empire, Immigration and the Ugandan Asian Exodus(Coronet/Hodder 2023) explores the ramifications of this landmark, unexplored forced migration on the generations which followed. Lucy studied History at the University of Bristol, writes for publications includingThe Guardian,The Sunday Times,CNNandThe New Humanitarian, and produces films and editorial content for brands and NGOs.
What’s In a Name?
OUR NAMES OUR SO MUNDANE WE HARDLY NOTICE THEM. Yet behind each one lie countless stories: of belonging and persecution, colonialism and resistance, cultural inheritance and conflicted identity.
In this intimate exploration of British multiculturalism, Sheela Banerjee traces the personal histories of friends and family through their names. Spanning centuries and continents – from west London to India, 1960s Jamaica to pre-Revolutionary Russia – What’s in a Name? is a remarkable ode to friendship and a vital celebration of Britain’s diverse history.
Sheela Banerjee is a writer, journalist and academic and her work has been published in The Guardian, Observer, Metro and Grazia. Her debut book, What’s In A Name? was published by Sceptre/Hodder, and is a New Statesman Book of the She directed TV programmes for the BBC and Channel 4 for many years, which told powerful stories of individual lives. She later followed a passion for literature and left TV to do a PhD on ghosts in modernist literature. She grew up mainly in Hayes, west London, and in India, and her work often focuses on questions of culture and belonging in the UK’s diaspora communities.
