Enrico Stennett
Enrico Stennett (1926 - 2011) was one of the most important activists in social justice and a member of the "Windrush Generation".
Born in Jamaica in a village named Maroon Town, Stennett eventually settled in North Wales. He came to Britain in September 1947, before the arrival of the Empire Windrush. Of mixed race heritage he encountered racism and social injustice even before arriving in Britain. This bred a man determined to fight against racism, and indeed, prejudice wherever he found it.
On arriving in Britain he found a country with entrenched attitudes to race and class. He soon became a member of the League for Coloured People and later the Coloured Workers' Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Enrico Stennett was not just an organiser. His writing and speaking was notable. He could be seen speaking at Hyde Park Corner. His book about his experiences "Buckra Massa Pickney" details not only his early life in Jamaica, but also his work on behalf of immigrants to Britain from the 1940s.
In 1950 he founded The Cosmopolitan Social Society with his first wife, Margaret, and a Jewish friend Stanley Freeman. The Society supported Caribbean immigrants to Britain. He was the co-founder and Chairman of the African League in 1952, supporting decolonisation and the freedom struggles in Africa.
He was the founder of "The African Voice", generally regarded as the first Black newspaper.
Until the end of his life he was an active supporter of the North Wales Race Equality Council.
