Gerlin Bean: Mother of the Movement

Lawrence Wishart, 2023, Softcover, 240 pages, 22 × 14 cm

This book recovers the neglected history of Gerlin Bean, an activist and community organiser in Britain’s Black radical movement. Gerlin Bean was one of the movement’s most active participants, but like many such women little is documented about her life and work. This is the first book to focus on Gerlin’s contributions to Black radical organising, looking at her activism across a number of influential organisations and initiatives, from youth programmes to Black Power politics and autonomous Black women’s groups.

Based on interviews with people who knew her along with original archival research work, this book explores Gerlin’s experiences against the backdrop of the revolutionary potential and vigour of the latter half of the twentieth century, reclaiming her as a critical figure in Black British history. The second title in LW’s Radical Black Women series, Gerlin Bean: Mother of the Movement is essential reading for historians of Black Britain, archivists, educators and activists engaged in decolonising British history and culture.