Uprising
Brixton 1981
Matt ClementA radical history of Brixton’s uprising and the forces that sparked it
This book presents a radical, in-depth survey of the Brixton uprising of 1981 and the social inequalities and institutional racism of British politics and policing that led to it. Matt Clement situates the events of April 1981 within the long history of urban oppression and revolt in London, as well as the contemporary Caribbean struggles that shaped the consciousness of the local community. He examines how policing practices, economic marginalization and the enduring legacy of empire produced the alienation that fuelled resistance, and how Rastafarian thought articulated a powerful cultural challenge to Babylon, the name given for the evil values of society that must be resisted for justice to prevail. Bringing together historical analysis and social critique, Uprising reveals how and why Brixton fought back – and how its defiant energy helped reshape British culture, politics and anti-racist activism.
A radical history of Brixton’s uprising and the forces that sparked it
This book presents a radical, in-depth survey of the Brixton uprising of 1981 and the social inequalities and institutional racism of British politics and policing that led to it. Matt Clement situates the events of April 1981 within the long history of urban oppression and revolt in London, as well as the contemporary Caribbean struggles that shaped the consciousness of the local community. He examines how policing practices, economic marginalization and the enduring legacy of empire produced the alienation that fuelled resistance, and how Rastafarian thought articulated a powerful cultural challenge to Babylon, the name given for the evil values of society that must be resisted for justice to prevail. Bringing together historical analysis and social critique, Uprising reveals how and why Brixton fought back – and how its defiant energy helped reshape British culture, politics and anti-racist activism.
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Uprising is a gripping account that places Brixton at the centre of Britain’s long history of crowd politics and resistance to racist state violence. Matt Clement shows how this South London neighbourhood illuminates the conditions that produced urban rebellions across late twentieth‑century England. The result is a powerful, historically grounded narrative that connects local struggle to wider traditions of popular protest and Black-led, multiracial grassroots radical politics.
'Adam Elliott-Cooper, Senior Lecturer in Social and Public Policy, Queen Mary University of London
Introduction
1 St Paul’s 1980: The Bristol Uprising
2 The Explosion: Brixton 1981
3 A Brief History of Riots and Uprisings in London
4 Here to Stay, Here to Fight
5 Black Power and Anti-Racism in the 1970s
6 No Future: 1970s Culture Wars
7 The Authoritarian Turn
8 Magical Urbanism
9 The Police Against Black People
10 The Uprising Spreads
11 The Legacy of Brixton 1981
References
Bibliography
Photo Acknowledgements
Index
Matt Clement is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Royal Holloway, University of London. His publications include A People’s History of Riots, Protest and the Law (2016) and No Justice, No Police? The Politics of Protest and Social Change (2023).