IMISCOE In the last years, the United Kingdom has witnessed a growing proportion of DISSERTATIONS mixed African-Caribbean and white British families. With rich new primary evidence of ‘mixed-race’ in the capital city, e Creolisation of London Kinship thoughtfully explores this population. Making an indelible contribution to both kinship The Creolisation of London Kinship research and wider social debates, the book emphasises a long-term evolution of family relationships across generations. Individuals are followed through changing The Creolisation of social and historical contexts, seeking to understand in how far many of these transformations may be interpreted as creolisation. Examined, too, are strategies and innovations in relationship construction, the social constraints put upon them, the special signi cance of women and children in kinship work and the importance of London Kinship non-biological as well as biological notions of family relatedness. Elaine Bauer is an anthropologist focusing on aspects of international migration, Mixed African-Caribbean and race and ethnic relations and family and kinship. She is co-author of Jamaican Hands Across the Atlantic, a fellow at the Young Foundation and an associate fellow at the White British Extended Families, Institute for the Study of the Americas, University of London. - “ is study throws light on social constraints and possibilities at a time of increasing national debate on migration, race and ethnicity. Bauer yields important new information of value to policymakers – with implications for multi-ethnic, multi-cultural areas everywhere.” Elizabeth omas-Hope, Professor of Environmental Management and Director, Centre for Environmental Management, University of the West Indies at Mona, Jamaica “Elegantly bringing together family sociology and ethnic/racial studies, and in a historical perspective, Bauer examines how, in confronting racism during the making of creole kinship, families become sites of resistance.” Stephanie Condon, National Demographic Institute (), Paris, France “Given the great numbers and growth of mixed African-Caribbean and white British families in Britain, Bauer’s book provides a valuable and insightful study of extended mixed families and kinship in the UK.” Miri Song, Reader in Sociology, School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, University of Kent, United Kingdom 9 7 8 9 0 8 9 6 4 2 3 5 6 · .. A U P The Creolisation of London Kinship IMISCOE International Migration, Integration and Social Cohesion in Europe The IMISCOE Research Network unites researchers from, at present, 27 institutes specialising in studies of international migration, integration and social cohesion in Europe. What began in 2004 as a Network of Excellence sponsored by the Sixth Framework Programme of the European Commission has become, as of April 2009, an independent self-funding endeavour. From the start, IMISCOE has promoted integrated, multidisciplinary and globally comparative research led by scholars from various branches of the economic and social sciences, the humanities and law. The Network furthers existing studies and pioneers new scholarship on migration and migrant integration. Encouraging innovative lines of inquiry key to European policymaking and governance is also a priority. The IMISCOE-Amsterdam University Press Series makes the Network’s findings and results available to researchers, policymakers and practitioners, the media and other interested stakeholders. High-quality manuscripts authored by Network members and cooperating partners are evaluated by external peer reviews and the IMISCOE Editorial Committee. The Committee comprises the following members: Christina Boswell, School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom Tiziana Caponio, Department of Political Studies, University of Turin / Forum for International and European Research on Immigration (FIERI), Turin, Italy Michael Collyer, Sussex Centre for Migration Research (SCMR), University of Sussex, United Kingdom Rosita Fibbi, Swiss Forum for Migration and Population Studies (SFM), University of Neuchâtel / Institute of Social Sciences, University of Lausanne, Switzerland Albert Kraler, International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), Vienna, Austria Leo Lucassen, Institute of History, Leiden University, The Netherlands Jorge Malheiros, Centre of Geographical Studies (CEG), University of Lisbon, Portugal Marco Martiniello, National Fund for Scientific Research (FNRS), Brussels / Center for Ethnic and Migration Studies (CEDEM), University of Liège, Belgium Patrick Simon, National Demographic Institute (INED), Paris, France Miri Song, School of Social Policy and Sociology, University of Kent, United Kingdom IMISCOE Policy Briefs and more information can be found at www.imiscoe.org. The Creolisation of London Kinship Mixed African-Caribbean and White British Extended Families, 1950-2003 Elaine Bauer IMISCOE Dissertations Cover design: Studio Jan de Boer BNO, Amsterdam Layout: The DocWorkers, Almere ISBN 978 90 8964 235 6 e-ISBN 978 90 4851 252 2 NUR 741 / 763 © Elaine Bauer / Amsterdam University Press 2010 All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the written permission of both the copyright owner and the author of the book. To Nicholas, Anthony, Tony and Paul Table of contents Acknowledgments 9 List of tables and figures 10 1 Introduction: London, the research context 11 2 Outlining and assessing studies of British kinship since the 1950s 45 3 Coming together: A case study of the Smith family 79 4 Extending the links: The agency of women and the significance of children in the creation and maintenance of kinship 109 5 Kinship histories: The significance of family history in the creation and maintenance of kinship relations 141 6 Mixed sociability and the growth of mixed African- Caribbean and white British families in London 173 7 Mixed heritage, racial prejudice and social positioning 207 8 Conclusion 245 Bibliography 255 Appendix I 269 Appendix II 271 Appendix III 275 Acknowledgments This research would not have been possible without the generous sup- port of Lord Michael Young of the former Institute of Community Studies (presently The Young Foundation), the Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the ORS Awards Scheme (United Kingdom Scholarships for International Research Students). To these funding bodies I express sincere thanks for giving me the opportunity to live and work in the United Kingdom. This research would also not have been possible without the women, men and children who shared their experiences with me. To these indi- viduals who welcomed me into their homes, allowed me to observe and participate in their lives and candidly told their stories as I probed into some of the most intimate areas of their family lives, I am above all grateful. All of them are quoted in this book under pseudonyms, in or- der to maintain confidentiality. I would like to thank Jean Besson, Victoria Goddard, Sophie Day and Pat Caplan for their sustained support, helpful suggestions and advice. During the period of my research, I was also co-researching with Paul Thompson on a joint project on Jamaican Transnational Families. I would like to thank him for his seemingly tireless feedback and intellec- tual ideas. Finally and very importantly, I thank my sons Nicholas and Anthony and all my family and friends in Canada for their understanding and encouragement, as I travelled 5,000 miles across the Atlantic to study and work in Britain. List of tables and figures Table 1.1 The UK Population, by ethnic group, 2001 14 Table 1.2 Largest local Caribbean population in 1991 15 Table 1.3 Caribbean population in Britain, 1951-1991 26 Appendix II Table 1 Relationship category: Legally married and together 271 Table 2 Relationship category: Legally married and parted 272 Table 3 Relationship category: Cohabiting 272 Table 4 Relationship category: Cohabiting but parted 273 Table 5 Relationship category: Visiting relationships 273 Table 6 Relationship category: Foster family 273 Table 7 Female-headed households 274 Appendix III Table 1 Cross-generational transmission 275 Figure 3.1 The Smiths: Four generations 108 Figure 4.1 Gobi’s family of origin 137 Figure 4.2 Headley’s family of origin 137 Figure 4.3 Gobi and Headley’s extended family 138 Figure 4.4 Randall’s family 138 Figure 4.5 Courtney’s family 138 Figure 4.6 Gobi’s extended family 139 Figure 5.1 Ken’s family of origin 170 Figure 5.2 Verna’s family of origin 171 Figure 5.3 Verna and Ken Morgan’s extended family 172 1 Introduction: London, the research context Since the early stages of colonialism, people from the Caribbean have been coming to Britain and forming intimate and family relationships with people in British society. A well-known case is that of Francis Barber, a Jamaican slave, who at age seventeen in 1752 became servant to Dr. Johnson, author of the famous English dictionary. Barber, who was educated at Johnson’s expense, remained with him and became his valet and secretary, as well as his main heir. Barber married an Englishwoman, they had four children and later bought a school, which he ran with his wife.1 However, such cases were rare, and social rela- tionships between African-Caribbean and white British