Jimi Famurewa Settlers: Journeys Through the Food, Faith and Culture of Black African London

It bit of a long one, this post

I have to say, I completely underestimated Settlers initially. I know of journalist Jimi Famurewa from his restaurant reviews in the Evening Standard. I was expecting to see more of the same but with pointed topics around being African in London

Instead I found myself fascinated by the themes covered in Settlers- From the British African journey and changing attitudes to commerce, grammar schools, church (and gentrification’s related impacts), culture, diaspora tensions and solidarity. Of course, there’s food- both historical and the emerging African restaurant scene in UK (including the thing with Ikoyi in The Strand).

Settlers first chapter covers ‘farming’ which refers to the thousands of Nigerian children who were fostered by British Families while their birth parents worked or studied to establish themselves. Famurewa himself was one of these children and I’m always interested to hear direct perspectives on it

I thought the book was brilliant. So well researched with both interviews and literature. Oral history supported with relevant policies and cultural shifts in modern history

It wasn’t perfect of course, but overall this was so informative, I think this book needs more eyes! Especially for second gen West Africans, you can probably recognise some of your own and parents stories. Settlers also discusses emerging  differences in our outlooks, with quite a few 20, 30 and 40 somethings opting to move back

The core of Settlers is the cultural, social and political journey of the waves of African immigrants who settled in England from the 1940s to the 1980s (my parents are in this wave) and generations which followed- bringing us to present day. I don’t think I’ve read a book as  focused on the trajectory of this move. As Famurewa mentions, “Black African” didn’t exist as a category in the consensus until 1991 .Between then and now, the impact of Africans on Britain’s society and culture is huge.

This is the UK, so of course there is an undercurrent of racism through Settlers, I didn’t feel like that was the main story here though- which I appreciated. This is a celebration of who are becoming and our paths that led here

For the length of Settlers (290 pages), Famurewa covers a lot, I’ve headlined a few of the topics which interested me most

Farming and African immigration in 50s- I was really immersed in the first chapter of Settlers, where Famurewa does a deep dive into Farming. I’m particularly interested in the subject, especially after seeing The Last Tree a few years back and reading a bit around it. Famurewa was himself fostered in the same process. He discusses the conditions, policy and cultural attitudes of both Nigerian and British that led to Farming becoming so common place. The phenomenon traces back to initial advert in Nursery World in 1955

You can read some of Famurewa’s writing on the subject here: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2022/sep/15/farmed-black-children-fostered-white-families-uk

The chapter acknowledges both the bad and good experiences . Using interviews with other fostered people, foster parents, articles and media around the subject (eg Farming the Film- starring Damson Idris) .

I found the knock on effects of changing policy on Farming very interesting. Along with the move toward independence in the mid 20th Century for West African countries, a wave of young African men moved to the UK to study. Famurewa notes that African students were initially welcomed immediately after empire as a means of maintaining connection and control- sons of diplomats etc . This class was gradually replaced by less well off economic migrants who weren’t as welcomed by the British Home Office  Famurewa discusses the mental impacts of racism and hostility on African students in England.

Early in the 1950s, The Colonial Office announced that married overseas students staying for longer than nine months could bring their wives along. So they did – and they had babies, many of whom ended up fostered by White families. Farming continued at least up until the 90s so this wasn’t always the story but was the beginning

These Policies allowing African wives to join students was supposed to quieten both sexual (interracial relationships)and political issues (growing “communist” sentiment). It was frustrating when I thought again of African women being used as a tool or a prop here, what else is new

There was much that lead to the decrease in farming- Legislation around trans racial adoption that led to tug of war court cases between foster parents and biological Nigerian parents; The UK Children’s Act 1975 increased complexity around adoption; Emotional and cultural differences between Nigerian parents and their  children, child psychologist studies, and unfortunately abuse in foster homes

It did feel, however like Famurewa was trying to balance the negative impacts of the practice with positive experiences  – This may be down to his own positive experience which and he does acknowledge it

The other sections are rooted in today as much as in modern history. Famurewa tracks a path from the decisions of earlier Africans immigrants to the culture of our generations now.  What do the cornerstones of African culture in Britain mean to us in the 2000s?

African markets like those in Dalston and Peckham are almost a portal- but the ownership of the business doesn’t always lie with the patrons. Largely White, Jewish and Asian traders have been the sellers over the past 50 odd years – sometimes a point of contention, sometimes forming community . As well as the economics of ownership, Settlers captures the Impacts of changing clientele that I’ve seen myself growing up!

Patrons want both African and British selling methods when it suits- be ready to haggle. Theres some exploration of what the role of African markets will be for millennials, Gen Z and beyond. Some of the older generation are moving out of the country, back to Africa and the Caribbean. Coupled with our growing addiction to Deliveroo, the demand for some of the products in African markets are just decreasing. We’re also venturing into online services like Oja- which unfortunately failed- but I’m pretty sure there will be more

When I walk through Peckham today, I still  hear congregations singing from upstairs units, while aunty asks me if I want to “make my hair” (meanwhile I thought I looked nice already) , then a trust fund baby passes me on a fixie. Real chaos, trust me-you see the impacts of gentrification in real time- Famurewa makes a point of discussing both  gentrification, and the central role played by Church in African communities.

It was fascinating to read about the first established African Churches in London, now there are 250+ in South London alone. They have always served spiritual, social and economic purposes to people shut out of other communities. Not without their own issues, Settlers notes the impact of churches like KICC and even SPAC nation. African churches were previously able to take up spaces in less desirable areas in the 90s- but now “regeneration” means it’s becoming more difficult to retain or gain space in those exact same places. Take that whole Yogarise debacle a few years ago- truly a do you laugh or cry situation

Settlers also explores cultural influence taking examples such as DLT as a case study in African influence, food and music. Theres been a rapid Increase of black African stars in music and film and even an ever increasing number of British born Africans who are relocating permanently to the continent. It’s a far cry from when African identity was ridiculed in the UK in the 80s & 90s. There are some anecdotes from people who grew up first gen being bullied at school by both Caribbean and white peers. Famurewa explores the roots of  tensions between African and Caribbean communities which it was important not to skip. The internet (and the grandparents) love a bit of diaspora war but in the UK, younger generations of Africans and Caribbeans are building more solidarity and shared culture together, intermarriages increasing. I think this would have been a good opportunity to discuss what a Black British Culture will look like in a few decades but that is a different book

Also- this is how I found out the 1st direct flight between Jamaica and Nigeria was in 2020 which is absolutely wild!

Referencing- I’ll take a moment to say I loved the referencing of  work by other Africans across the diaspora. eg The Long Throat Memoirs by Yemisi Aribisala, Desmond’s TV Show, Darcus Howe, and many more

Settlers by Jimi Famurewa, Bloomsbury Publishing 2022