Asian Britain

A photographic history

Susheila Nasta and Florian Stadtler, The Westbourne Press, 320 pages, paperback, £20

Once again the question of immigration is in the headlines as a new wave of people arrives from Eastern Europe to a hostile reception from the Daily Mail.

Following the 2007 publication of Black Britain, this is a new book of photographs charting the lives of migrants in Britain.

The story of south Asians in Britain is weaved through a broader history of work, culture and politics. Highlights include photographs of young Asians marching against the fascists in the 1960s and of Sikh workers at Ford in Dagenham.

What is striking is the historical reach of the book. Many people think of the first immigrants from the  Indian sub-continent coming to work in Britain in the 1950s. This book shows the Asian seamen, students, servants and suffragettes who came before.

The book covers the different phases of the historic settlement of Asian migrants from the subcontinent, the Caribbean and East Africa. Personalities from the arts, politics and sport appear alongside the first female law student at Oxford and the first Asian MP. 

But of equal significance are the experiences of the ordinary immigrants – the women and men who made their new lives here.

There are 286 black and white photographs in the book which has been produced in association with Getty Images and the British Library.

Reviews contributed by the Bookmarks socialist bookshop. Order online at www.bookmarksbookshop.co.uk