Description
Lawrence tells his story through a dozen core cases involving race-based criminal injustice, dating from 1919 - Charles Wotten, who having served in the Royal Navy during WW1 was murdered by a mob in Cardiff - to the present day. By incorporating societal, judicial and police services changes to add context to each of the cases, it shows that while progress has been made that large gaps remain.
The first post-war murder of a Black person in Britain was that of Kelso Cochrane, a case which shares many disturbing aspects with the murder of Stephen Lawrence more than 30 years later. His death did, however, inspire the creation of the Notting Hill Carnival. No one has ever been charged and the case remains unsolved. Subsequent key cases range from that of David Oluwale in 1971 (the first successful prosecution of British police officers for involvement in the death of a black person) to the Mangrove Nine, the death of thirteen people in the New Cross Fire, and the shooting of Lawrence's own mother by Brixton police in 1985.
Book Information
ISBN 9780349146720
Author Lee Lawrence
Imprint Little, Brown Book Group
Publisher Little, Brown Book Group