#windrush22

[princesscatherinemiddleton]

The National Windrush Monument at Waterloo Station was designed to symbolize the courage, commitment and resilience of the generation of British-Caribbean people. The monument designed by Basil Watson, a Jamaican sculptor

[princesscatherinemiddleton]

WINDRUSH | On 22 June 1948, somewhere between 492 and 1087 Caribbean people were brought to the UK on Empire Windrush, to help improve the UK's economy. The Afro-Caribbean migrants worked in the production of steel, coal, iron, and food, as well as jobs in the service sector, such as running public transport and staffing the NHS. The immigrants were faced with extreme intolerance from the predominantly white population of the UK. Many were also denied access to private employment and accommodation, as well as pubs, clubs, and churches.

More seriously, a number of the immigrants who arrived in the wake of Windrush were illegaly detained, denied legal rights and, in some cases, wrongly deported back to the Caribbean. Others lost their jobs or homes, had their passports confiscated, and were denied benefits and medical care. A number of long-term UK residents were refused re-entry to the UK after leaving for holidays.

[princesscatherinemiddleton]

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Baroness Floella Benjamin attended the unveiling of the National Windrush Monument at Waterloo Station.

Windrush Day was named for the Empire Windrush, a ship that brought hundreds of Caribbean immigrants to the UK in June 1948 to help fill a labor shortage following World War II. Until the early 1970s, thousands of men, women and children — dubbed the Windrush Generation — settled in the U.K., helping cities and industries rebuild after the war. Windrush Day was officially marked as a day of celebration by the UK government in 2018.

The inaugural celebration came amid the Windrush Scandal, which saw hundreds of Caribbean immigrants living and working in the UK wrongly targeted by immigration enforcement.

[princesscatherinemiddleton]

The Duchess of Cambridge met with young children during the unveiling of the National Windrush Monument | June 22 2022