Reading and Resources

The module readings are available through the University's library, with all of the required readings for weekly seminars being available to access online.

All readings, including suggested further readings and sources, can be found on the Talis reading list.Link opens in a new window

Students will often ask 'what are some good readings to prepare for this module?' - or, particularly as this is such an important/contemporary subject, will ask for good 'starting points'. The readings below are recommended as giving introductions or overviews of many of the topics discussed in this module. Those that are available electronically through Warwick library are linked, others can often be bought fairly cheaply on used book sites such as AbeBooks.co.uk.

Some good starting points that will be useful throughout the module:

Reni Eddo-Lodge, Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About RaceLink opens in a new window - an excellent starting point for this topic.
Akala, Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of EmpireLink opens in a new window - highlighting Britain's denial and problematic relationship with its imperial history.
Afua Hirsch, Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and BelongingLink opens in a new window - an engaging blend of memoir and history, thinks through identity and lived experience.
Maya Goodfellow, Hostile Environment: How Immigrants Became ScapegoatsLink opens in a new window - a good overview of the 'Windrush scandal'.
Ron Ramdin, Reimaging Britain: Five Hundred Years of Black and Asian HistoryLink opens in a new window - a good overview of the histories of Black and Asian people in Britain.
Paul Gilroy, There Ain't No Black in the Union Jack: The Cultural Politics of Race and NationLink opens in a new window - a very influential book published in 1987, exploring racial discourses in Britain.

Other works to continue with:

Hakim Adi (ed.), Black British History: New Perspectives from Roman Times to the Present DayLink opens in a new window.
Kennetta Hammond Perry, London is the Place for Me: Black Britons, Citizenship, and the Politics of Race.Link opens in a new window
Panikos Panayi, Migrant City: A New History of LondonLink opens in a new window.
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Who Do We Think We Are? Imagining the New BritainLink opens in a new window.
Humayun Ansari, ‘The Infidel Within’: Muslims in Britain since 1800.
Peter Fryer, Staying Power: The History of Black People in BritainLink opens in a new window.
Andrew Geddes, The Politics of Immigration and Race.
Dilip Hiro, Black British, White BritishLink opens in a new window.
Colin Holmes, John Bull’s Island: Immigration and British Society, 1871-1971.
Tony Kushner, The Battle of Britishness: Migrant Journeys, 1685 to the PresentLink opens in a new window.
Zig Layton-Henry,The Politics of Immigration: Immigration, ‘Race’ and ‘Race’ Relations in Post-War Britain.
Louise London, Whitehall and the Jews, 1933-1948: British Immigration Policy, Jewish Refugees and the HolocaustLink opens in a new window.
Robert Miles and Annie Phizacklea (eds), White Man’s Country: Racism in British Politics.
Panikos Panayi, An Immigration History of Britain: Multicultural Racism since 1800Link opens in a new window.
Kathleen Paul, Whitewashing Britain: Race and Citizenship in the Postwar EraLink opens in a new window.
Mike Phillips and Trevor Phillips,Windrush: the Irresistible Rise of Multi-racial BritainLink opens in a new window.
Bill Schwarz, The White Man's WorldLink opens in a new window.
John Solomos, Race and Racism in BritainLink opens in a new window.
Ian Spencer, British Immigration Policy since 1939: The Making of Multi-Racial Britain.
Paul Ward, Britishness since 1870Link opens in a new window.
Richard Weight and Abigail Beach (eds), The Right to Belong: Citizenship and National Identity in Britain, 1930-1960.
Robert Winder, Bloody Foreigners: The Story of Immigration to Britain.

Finally, some important 'classic works' for this subject:

Some great primary source collections include:

David Englander, A Documentary history of Jewish immigrants in Britain, 1840-1920Link opens in a new window.
Peter Leese, Beata Piatek, and Izabela Curyllo-Klag (eds), The British Migrant Experience 1700-2000: An Anthology.
Panikos Panayi, The Impact of Immigration: A Documentary History of the Effects and Experiences of Immigrants in Britain since 1945Link opens in a new window.
Modern Record Centre (Warwick), digitised documents relating to migration, policing, employment, community activism, etc.: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/studying/docs/race/Link opens in a new window https://warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/studying/docs/rem/Link opens in a new window
The Black Cultural Archives, the only national heritage centre dedicated to collecting, preserving and celebrating the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain: https://blackculturalarchives.org/Link opens in a new window
Legacies of British Slave-Ownership, a database of claims for compensation (by former enslavers for a loss of income) following the abolition of slavery in 1830s: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/Link opens in a new window
Interviews conducted by the Birmingham Black Oral History Project: http://www.bbohp.org.uk/node/21Link opens in a new window
Staying Power: Photographs of Black British Experience 1950s-1990s: http://www.vam.ac.uk/page/s/staying-power/Link opens in a new window
British Pathé have lots of interviews/reports/etc. and there are a lot of sources that you can find through searching their catalogue: http://britishpathe.com/Link opens in a new window
Mass Observation Online has lots of material related to life in Britain, including ideas of national identity, race, etc.: http://www.massobservation.amdigital.co.ukLink opens in a new window