Category Archives: Family tales

The History (4) Boys

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Diane caught up with Leicester radical historian Ned Newitt the other day and bemoaned the fact that I wasn’t ‘doing history’ any more. OK, that’s partly just another common mum type theme about sons not doing what their mothers want. But I confess since ‘Uni’ (1987) I haven’t entirely been quiet. After all I did help the 30th anniversary campaign (1998) with Dr Coby Smith to re-try the real killers of Dr Martin Luther King, re-writing history in the process. But that’s mothers for you. Never happy.

PS: Looking forward to unveiling of the MLK scuplture in Washington DC next year, April 2008, also a US election year I believe? I’m sure these connections are not lost on Rev Al Sharpton, from what he was saying about the lasting legacy of slavery on the Daily Show. Funny thing is how going to Brazil I found out more slaves went there than the US; maybe that’s why Snoop did his video from there? The connections are there to be discovered, that’s history. (Funny, didn’t I hear earlier this month that the study of slavery is going to be part of the National Curriculum in the UK, as part of the study of the British Empire?).

Celebration

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Saw Harold Pinter’s play ‘Celebration’ on the TV, and loved the line about all mother’s want to make love to their sons, very funny. All the more so for when thanks to Red Pepper magazine which was supported by Pinter I happened to go back to his place with everyone else and I had the cheek to call my mother from his kitchen. Talking of Red Pepper it also makes my laugh now to think that Hilary used to moan that Harold P would complain if his articles were edited in any way. The cheek of the man, who does he think he is?! OK, enough I’m off to work, it’s the last day of February.