Description:All of the following sources are available for reference in Birmingham Central Library. Several may also be available for reference or borrowing in local libraries.
Birmingham City Council, Community Profiles (Birmingham, 1995-1997). These eight publications provide information about seven communities: African Caribbean, Bangladeshi, Chinese, Hindu, Irish, Pakistani and Vietnamese, Community Languages in Birmingham. Though several important minorities are not profiled in these books, they are helpful introductions to the diverse cultures in Birmingham. Statistical information is largely based on the 1991 census, however it under represents the size and growth of minority communities in Birmingham.
Dick, Malcolm Celebrating Sanctuary: Birmingham and the Refugee Experience c.1750-2002 (Birmingham, 2002). This study of Birmingham’s long experience as a centre for refugee settlement, contains interviews with some Handsworth residents.
Dudrah, Rajinder K, “Birmingham (UK): Constructing City spaces through Black popular cultures and the Black public sphere”, City, vol. 6, no. 3, 2002, pp 335-350. This article reports the findings of qualitative research that examines the historical and contemporary urban landscape of Birmingham as interpreted by its Black and Asian communities.
Dudrah, Rajinder K, “Drum’n’dhol: British bhangra music and diasporic South Asian identity formation”, European Journal of Cultural Studies, vol. 5, no. 3, pp 363-383. An exploration of the importance and use of British bhangra music in the lives of young British Asians in Birmingham.
Dudrah, Rajinder K, “Vilayati Bollywood: popular Hindi cinema-going and diasporic South Asian identity in Birmingham (UK)”, Javnost-The Public: Journal of the European Institute for Culture and Communication, vol. 9, no. 1, 2002, pp 19-36. The rise, fall, re-emergence and social significance of Bollywood cinema-going since 1945 in Birmingham.
Ian Grosvenor, Rita McLean and Sian Roberts, Making Connections: Birmingham Black International History (Birmingham 2002). A useful book on the history of Birmingham’s Black experience. Several contributions and a number of images in the publication relate to Handsworth.
Handsworth 1985. The three main reports into the riots and disturbances of 1985 provide different interpretations and a range of primary source material. They are:
“A Different Reality”: An Account of Black People’s Experiences. Report of the Review Panel (Birmingham,1986).
The Handsworth-Lozells Riots, September 1985. The Report of the Chief Constable of Birmingham (Birmingham, 1986).
Silverman Report into the Lozells Disturbances (Birmingham,1986).
Millennibrum Project, Twelve supplements published in The Birmingham Post and Evening Mail, 2000, edited by Malcolm Dick. These focused on particular communities in Birmingham and their histories. The following have particular relevance for Handsworth:
Irish, Scottish and Welsh Heritage, The Birmingham Post: Wednesday, March 1, 2000:
Refugees in Birmingham, The Birmingham Post, Wednesday, July 5, 2000
Black Culture, Evening Mail, Tuesday, October 3, 2000,
Black History, The Birmingham Post, Wednesday, November 1, 2000
Religion in Birmingham, Evening Mail, Monday, December 4, 2000
Birmingham and the Wider World, The Birmingham Post, Wednesday December 27, 2000
Millennibrum Project, Recordings and Transcripts of Interviews conducted by Helen Lloyd and Lorraine Blakemore. 150 oral history interviews were conducted in 2000 and 2001 and several were with people of different ages and cultural backgrounds who have lived or worked in Handsworth. They provide an insight into experiences in the area over many years. A searchable database is available in Local Studies and History, Floor 6, Central Library Birmingham.
Murphy, Dervla, Tale for Two Cities: Travel of another Sort (London, 1987). A useful personal exploration of Handsworth and Bradford after the disturbances of 1985, which contains detailed information on the high levels of deprivation and community relations in Handsworth.
Parker, David and Long, Paul, “Reimaging Birmingham: Public history, selective memory and the narration of urban change”, European Journal of Cultural Studies, vol. 6, no. 2, 2003, pp 157-178. Though not specifically about Handsworth, this article offers a criticism of the nature of local historical work. It also includes observations on how much of Handsworth has been represented in populist history and the local media.
University of Birmingham School of Public Policy, A Brighter Future? A Feasibilty Study of the Vietnamese Community in Birmingham (Birmingham, 2000). An examination of the social, economic and cultural experience of Birmingham’s Vietnamese community.
www.birmingham.gov.uk The official Birmingham City Council website contains information about Handsworth. Use the A-Z menu to explore, for example, databases relating to Census 2001, Handsworth and Refugees.
Many websites provide an insight into Handsworth’s recent history. The best way to access them is via a search engine such as www.google.com