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People 'need to understand' Windrush generation

Kate Bradbrook & Aimee Dexter
BBC News, Northamptonshire
Kate Bradbrook/BBC Lilian Francis is standing in the middle of the picture looking slightly to the left of the camera. She is wearing a black top with floral patterns on and has a necklace made of white pearls.Kate Bradbrook/BBC
Ms Francis, who said the Windrush scandal did not affect her directly, has lived in Wellingborough for about 30 years

People have come out into the streets of a town to celebrate the contribution Caribbean migrants and their families have made to the UK.

Communities in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, joined together to mark the event of Windrush Day on Sunday.

HMT Empire Windrush docked in Tilbury, Essex, in 1948, bringing hundreds of passengers from the Caribbean.

Lilian Francis, 82, who is a part of the Windrush generation, said: "Many people don't know about Windrush, and they need to understand what it is all about."

Travellers on HMT Empire Windrush - and those on other ships which came to the UK until 1971 - became known as the Windrush generation.

Ms Francis said she left her home in Montserrat in 1961 to come to the UK, where she had family.

Now living in Wellingborough, Ms Francis said: "It is important for people to know our history and why we come here. The government needed us to come and work.

"People came here and tried to get accommodation and that was very hard.

"Many people find these things very easy now, but in our days it was not that easy."

Kate Bradbrook/BBC Lots of people are stood in a street crowded around a white banner which has a logo on the front. The logo says Windrush Generations on it, and has the date of 1948 in the middle. A man who appears to be the Mayor, wearing a gold chain around his neck, stands in the middle.Kate Bradbrook/BBC
Lots of communities came out on to the streets of Wellingborough on Sunday

The event was in partnership with the town council, Northamptonshire Rights & Equality Council, Made with Many, Wellingborough African Caribbean Association, and the Wellingborough Windrush Innovation Society.

Windrush Day has been held on 22 June since 2018 to celebrate the legacy of the Windrush generation.

It was set up in the wake of the Windrush scandal, when thousands of people were wrongly classed as illegal immigrants.

The then prime minister, Theresa May, apologised for their treatment and a compensation scheme was established.

Glenroy Bell is standing to the left of the image looking towards the camera smiling. He has short brown hair, and is wearing a navy suit, blue shirt, and a pink floral tie. He is standing in front of a blue door.
Glenroy Bell is one of the organisers of the Windrush Day events in Wellingborough

Glenroy Bell from the Windrush Innovation Society, in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, said: "This year, organisations have come together to make it a bigger event.

"It is part of my personal heritage, my grandparents came over from Jamaica in the 50s.

"We want to celebrate the positive things of what the Caribbean members have done in the UK."

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