The color bar may be Britain’s most shameful secret—even though it’s not so secret after all. In journalist David Jesudason’s intensely researched and deeply personal new piece titled “Breaking the Color Bar — How One Man Helped Desegregate Britain’s Pubs (and Fought for an Anti-Racist Future),” which was published on March 16, 2022, David shares the story of Avtar Singh Jouhl, a British Indian activist, communist, and beer lover who was instrumental in bringing awareness to and dismantling segregated drinking spaces in Britain.
In this conversation, David and I unpack his process for approaching the piece: how his personal experiences and identity help him tackle thorny topics like racism, what he didn’t learn from the history books (and what he took upon himself to discover), which current events led him to write this, and how Britain continues to deny its legacy of racism both yesterday, today, and tomorrow through the residual effects of imperialism and nationalism. You’ll also hear a clip from Avtar himself, sharing his own experience in his own voice, as a part of living history.
This is a good time to remind anyone who still thinks beer isn’t political how wrong they are, and how far we still have to go to ensure safe, inclusive spaces for all. Join us, right now, to hear about how one extraordinary man made an enormous impact in the fight against racism in Britain, what didn’t make it into the story, and what comes next, both in and out of beer.