page_title: British African-Caribbean people
section_title: The community
hierarchical_section_title: British African-Caribbean people / The community
caption_attribution_description: English: Official portrait of Ms Diane Abbott
context_page_description: British African-Caribbean people are residents of the United Kingdom who are of Caribbean descent whose ancestors were primarily indigenous to Africa. As immigration to the United Kingdom from Africa increased in the 1990s, the term has sometimes been used to include UK residents solely of African origin or as a term to define all Black British residents, though the phrase African and Caribbean has more often been used to cover such a broader grouping. The most common and traditional use of the term African-Caribbean community is in reference to groups of residents continuing aspects of Caribbean culture, customs and traditions in the UK.
  The African-Caribbean population in the UK come from the Islands in the West Indies such as Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Barbados, Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia, Dominica, Montserrat, Anguilla, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Guyana, and Belize.
  African-Caribbean communities are present throughout the United Kingdom's major cities, the UK Census identified the largest concentration is in London followed by Birmingham.
context_section_description: In many parts of Britain, African-Caribbean people have been recognised as being part of a distinct community. In the 1950s and 1960s, community centres and associations sprung up in some British towns and cities with an aim to serve African-Caribbean populations. One such example was the African Caribbean Self Help Organisation (ACSHO), founded in 1994 in the district of Handsworth in Birmingham. These centres have often addressed issues that rise within the community, including problems of police harassment and concerns about the housing of Black people, which was viewed as discriminatory during the early decades of mass immigration. One such community centre was the Gloucestershire West Indian Association, which was formed in 1962. The formation of this group was in response to a number of issues that arose within the community at this time. These included problems around police harassment and concerns about the housing of Black people on certain council estates in the city, which was viewed as discrimination and segregation. The centres also allowed African-Caribbean peoples to socialise without risking the potential racial discrimination and aggression of "unfriendly pubs". Many of these associations appointed a Community Relations Officer whose role was to liaise between the community and wider British society including the establishment. Other responsibilities included arranging social events, such as festivals, carnivals and coach trips, which helped bring the communities together. Large centres presently operating include the Leeds West Indian centre and the Manchester West Indian centre. Typical of present-day centres is the Afro Caribbean Millennium Centre in Birmingham, which was established with National Lottery funding to support principally Caribbean people in areas such as employment, housing, education, immigration, and cultural issues.
caption: Diane Abbott, born to Jamaican parents, became the first black woman elected to the House of Commons in 1987.
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