Remembrance & Memorials : The people's poet, Benjamin Zephaniah

4WardEverUK • 1 January 2024

source: 4WardEverUK Writers

first published: 21 December 2023

Image Credit: George Becker at www.Pexels.com

From all of our hundreds of Remembrance Calendar entries, we particularly feature certain cases that were of notable historical significance.

Professor Benjamin Zephaniah

The following article is dedicated to Benjamin Zephaniah (cousin of Mikey Powell), who died on 7 December 2023 aged 65. He died in the early hours of Thursday morning after being diagnosed with a brain tumour eight weeks before.

Brother, Tippa Naphtali, said; "To the world Benjamin was the renowned writer, poet, human rights activist, actor and outspoken critic of the state and social injustice and more'. To us, his family, he was also all of these things, but most important of all he was simply a son, brother, uncle or cousin - and we will miss him deeply.

"We've put together this collection of clips and stories to demonstrate the depth of respect which is held globally for Benjamin. His message and legacy will remain for generations, carrying on his work and influence in all spheres of cultural and social dialogue.

"With the greatest of respect dear brother."

Writer and poet Benjamin Zephaniah has been remembered as a "titan of British literature" after his death aged 65. Zephaniah was born and raised in Birmingham, UK, the son of a Barbadian postman and a Jamaican nurse. He was dyslexic and left school aged 13, unable to read or write.

Benjamin Zephaniah: The People’s Poet

(by friend and comrade, Mukhtar Dar)

Benjamin Zephaniah was the living embodiment of the principles he championed—justice, equality, and humanity. His is a profound legacy for young people in our communities to emulate and follow, writes Mukhtar Dar, former member of the Birmingham Asian Youth Movement.

My journey with Benjamin Zephaniah began in the vibrant cauldron of ideologies that was Handsworth in the mid-1980s. As a member of the Sheffield Asian Youth Movement, I found myself immersed in the Black revolutionary politics that defined this hub, attracting artists, activists, and academics. It was here that I first encountered the magnetic presence of Benjamin Zephaniah.

In those tumultuous times, I was documenting the anti-racist struggles of Asian and African Caribbean communities, and in particular the Newham 7 and Newham 8 Campaigns — Asian youth who defended themselves and their communities against brutal racist attacks in East London. Benjamin and his brother Tippa Naphtali actively supported these campaigns, lending their voices through performances at fundraising events and, together with Tippa, and I, we engaged the crowd on the mic while playing drums during the weekly pickets of the trial outside the Old Bailey in London.

Life took me to Manchester and Liverpool, where I had the privilege of teaching art at the Centre for Arts Development Training. It was during this time that I discovered the personal connection—Amina, one of my students, of Pakistani background introduced me to her husband, Benjamin Zephaniah.

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