Notting Hill Carnival celebrates London’s diversity after racist attacks

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By Suban Abdulla and Catarina Demony

LONDON (Reuters) -In 1959, Trinidadian activist Claudia Jones organised a Caribbean carnival in St Pancras Town Hall in London in response to race riots, planting the seeds for Notting Hill Carnival, one of the world’s largest street parties. 

Revellers on Monday, the second day of this year’s carnival, said Jones’ message of unity had never been more important, after racist riots in late July were sparked by false information online about the suspected killer of three young girls in a knife attack in Southport, northwest England.

“Everyone comes together (at the carnival). You see people from different countries just flocking together on the streets,” said Jocelyn Kuyaziwma, 28.

“I feel like (the carnival) is a step in the right direction in terms of what I would like Britain to be on a daily basis,” said Kuyaziwma, who lives in Wales, and came to London to be part of Mangrove Mas, one of the carnival’s oldest masquerade bands.

Matthew Phillip, the Notting Hill carnival’s chief executive, told Reuters the event was Britain’s biggest celebration of inclusion – “of the things we have in common, rather than focusing on our differences”.

The 56th edition of the carnival was expected to draw a million people to the streets of west London to celebrate the city’s diversity and its Caribbean community.

The carnival traces its roots to the hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Caribbean, known as the “Windrush” generation, who came to Britain between 1948 and 1971 to help rebuild the country following World War Two. 

Their arrival was accompanied by racial tensions and the unfair treatment of Black people, with riots breaking out in 1958, including in the London district of Notting Hill, where many Caribbean migrants lived at the time. 

“Notting Hill Carnival was born in response to racist riots,” race equality think tank Runnymede Trust said. “These events, and the divisive rhetoric which fuelled them, feel painfully relevant today.”

Jhen-I, a DJ at one of the carnival’s sound systems, said London was one of the most diverse cities in the world.

“So it is all about celebrating each other (…) and always respecting each other,” he said.

‘IT’S ALL LOVE’

Over the years, the indoor event organised by Jones has developed into the vibrant celebration it is today of multiculturalism and of how generations of migrants and their descendents have contributed to British society.

“It is important for us to celebrate our culture and where we have come from and for everyone to be together,” said 41-year-old Ramzan Bacchus, who was wearing a Guyana bandana.

“It does not matter where you come from (…) everyone is here to celebrate, together, as one people,” he added.

London police deployed around 7,000 officers at the event, which it said was seen by a minority of people as a chance to commit crime.

It said three people were stabbed on Sunday – a 32-year-old woman, who was in a critical condition in hospital, and two men, aged 29 and 24. A total of 103 people were arrested and 18 officers were assaulted on Sunday, police said.

Monday’s celebrations featured trucks draped in colourful materials, carrying bands and sound systems playing soca and reggae songs, surrounded by people in bright festival costumes.

Many brought flags of Caribbean nations. 

Jama Elmi, 50, a Londoner originally from Somalia, said the recent riots had not changed anything.

“The carnival (signifies) togetherness, happiness, good food, good culture,” he said. “It’s all love.”

(Reporting by Suban Abdulla and Catarina Demony; Editing by Paul Sandle, Angus MacSwan, Gareth Jones and Barbara Lewis)