Paul Stephenson, right, with Tony Benn
A new exhibition celebrating the life of the Bristol man whose campaign led to Britain’s first Race Relations Act has opened at Bristol Record Office.
The exhibition follows the life of civil rights champion Paul Stephenson OBE as a child brought up in care in the Home Counties during World War II, his time in the RAF and his entry into the political arena when he was one of the organisers of the Bristol Bus Boycott in 1963.
The boycott was called in response to Bristol Omnibus Company’s refusal to employ black workers. Local Bristol MP, Tony Benn and Labour Party leader and future Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, supported the boycott. After several months the company backed down.
The bus boycott was fundamental to the introduction of the first Race Relations Act in 1965, which changed the way in which Britain views its black communities.
Paul also worked with many famous black people, including Muhammad Ali, to act as role models for black children. He has received many awards for his work including the OBE and he is the first black Freeman of the City of Bristol.
The exhibition runs at Bristol Record Office until April 21. A book, Memoirs of a Black Englishman, is available from www.tangentbooks.co.uk.