24th April 1979: Police in Southall during rioting. (Photo by Evening Standard/Getty Images)

40 Years ago Southall was rocked by violent racism that led to the killing of two young men.

Gurdip was murdered on the 4th June 1976 in a racially motivated attack. His murder galvanized the whole town especially its youth in fighting back.

Blair was a school teacher, a member of the NUT, ANL and SWP who came to demonstarte against the fascist National Front. He was murdered by the Police. The Government deployed some 2,756 officers to make sure the NF could have their rally in the heart of Southall. However Southall rose up in their thousands against the fascists. Over 700 people were arrested and 345 were charged and tried by the jury-less ‘Diplock Courts’. The People’s Unite Centre was deliberately smashed up and then demolished by the local council whose leader was perversely and outrageously given an OBE for ‘community relations’.

The fight against fascism and all forms of racism is as important then as it is today.

Please attend this Sat 2pm Dominion Road Southall In Memory of Gurdip Chagger & Blair Peach

Thanks to Socialist Worker for pictures; please read their excellent article Southall ’79 when the police killed Blair Peach