Discover a lesser-known chapter of Leicester’s wartime history and the experiences of African American servicemen stationed in Britain during the Second World War.
The Stephen Lawrence Research Centre at De Montfort University welcomes Dr Liam McCarthy for a talk about his forthcoming book, The Life of African American GIs in Britain in WWII: A War Within a War.
The book includes a chapter examining events in Leicester, where tensions between Black and white American servicemen led to serious racial violence in 1944.
Dr McCarthy will explore how Black GIs serving in the segregated United States military experienced Britain, where many local people welcomed them and objected to the discrimination they faced from white American personnel.
Relationships between African American servicemen and local women were central to many of these tensions. Today, people in Leicester continue to trace their family histories to relationships formed during this period.
Following the talk, Dr McCarthy will be joined by Terry Harrison, one of the Leicester descendants whose family story is connected to an African American GI.
The discussion will be hosted by Dr Chris Zembe, Senior Lecturer in History at De Montfort University, and will be followed by questions from the audience.
Event enquiries:
slrc@dmu.ac.uk
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