The Liverpool 8 Uprisings of 1981 are to be remembered by a 40th anniversary exhibition.
The exhibition will be curated by Writing on the Wall and Liverpool Record Office, looking at a crucial moment in the history of Liverpool’s Black community.
The exhibition is free to attend and will run for two months from October 22 until December 22.
It will include documents and photographs of the uprisings taken from the L8 Law Centre archive.
In a recent documentary, called Almost Liverpool 8, locals talk about how before the uprisings everybody referred to the area as Liverpool 8 and the name Toxteth was hardly used.
The uprisings of 1981 were a culmination of years of racism, failure of police to protect black people from racist violence and the effects of Thatcherite politics in the area.
During the fight back, which happened across nine nights, there were just as many white people as black people involved.
The whole of the community fought back and after the uprisings a no-go zone was unofficially established, where police were cautious to enter.
The exhibition is part of the Black History Month programme from Writing on the Wall, which also includes events such as an evening with Mayor Joanne Anderson, a series of workshops with artist Blue Saint, a conference commemorating the 1981 uprisings and more.
Black History Month is here! 🔥
We have an incredible programme coming up, including events with @KimJohnsonMP, @ErinmaBell, @NgunanAdamu, @Natalie_Denny_ , @LawrenceHoo & @Blue_Saint 😱
To see our full line-up and book your tickets: https://t.co/4JdsI5RITX#BHM21 #BLM pic.twitter.com/xdWAUhA5Wz
— Writing on the Wall (@wowfest) October 1, 2021
The exhibition at Liverpool Central Library covers a crucial aspect of Liverpool’s Black history, which represents the determination and power of Liverpool’s Black community.
This part of the history of the community has been forgotten, yet has negatively affected the reputation of the area for decades. Now, however, Liverpool 8 is a thriving hub of culture.
