Site of the Fifth Pan-African Congress, held in October 1945

The Pan-African movement emerged during the 1800s as European powers colonised Africa. Black thinkers and activists organised a series of international congresses to discuss how African people could free themselves from imperial control. Meetings took place in European cities, but delegates travelled from around the world. Their discussions helped inspire several people who later led independence movements in their home countries. 

Black migrants often found Manchester more welcoming than other British cities, but prejudice remained widespread. ‘Colour bars’ deliberately kept Black people out of venues, jobs and other opportunities. At the same time, Manchester’s cotton workers had supported Black rights during the American Civil War. By 1945, the city had energetic Black activists, students and entrepreneurs who created multiracial spaces and challenged discrimination. This history made Manchester a strong choice for a British Pan-African Congress. 

Around 200 people attended from Monday 15 to Sunday 21 October 1945. They included African students studying in Britain, freedom fighters who had travelled from Africa, and representatives of trade unions and workers’ groups. The week covered racial discrimination, education, children’s welfare, working conditions, rights and independence. Speakers included Amy Ashwood Garvey, co-founder of the newspaper Negro World, journalist George Padmoreand sociologist William Du Bois. Manchester’s Lord Mayor, William Jackson, formally welcomed the delegates. 

Earlier congresses, including the first meeting in Paris in 1919, had been mainly middle class. Some delegates had distanced themselves from activists they considered too radical or working class. The Manchester meeting had a different character. The city’s politics had long been shaped by industrialisation and campaigns for workers’ rights. Many Pan-Africanists believed socialism could help break the economic systems that gave empires power over colonies. Local Communists also fought racism, including through campaigns led by Manchester boxer Len Johnson, although they did not always agree with the Pan-African Federation. 

The congress was partly funded by Dr T. Ras Makonnen, an entrepreneur who had studied history at Manchester University. Makonnen, known to friends as “Mak”, ran restaurants, a nightclub and a bookshop that welcomed customers of different races. Their profits helped pay for the meeting. His political contacts also helped persuade Conservative councillor Richard Harper to make the Town Hall available. Makonnen worked with friends including Salford doctor Peter Milliard and restaurant owner Alfred Gaisie. 

After the congress, money from their businesses was sent to Africa to support freedom campaigns. Three delegates went on to lead their nations towards independence: Hastings Banda in Malawi, Jomo Kenyatta in Kenya and Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana. Their later careers were different, but their presence shows why the Manchester congress became a landmark in the history of African liberation. 

Read George Padmore’s documentation of the Congress Resolutions. Listen to Alfred Gaisie, who ran restaurants with Dr Makonnen, talk about the Congress and its aftermath. See photos of the Congress in this excellent blog post. Learn how Black boxer Len Johnson, born in East Manchester in 1902, campaigned against ‘colour bars’ in his home city. Dig deeper into the story of the Manchester Congress with The 1945 Manchester Pan-African Congress revisited by Hakim Adi and Marika Sherwood, published 1995 by New Beacon Books and free to borrow from Manchester Library.