Description:The Co-ordinating Committee Against Racial Discrimination (CCARD) was set up in 1961 by Jagmohan Joshi and Maurice Ludmer a sports journalist who was also the founding editor of the anti-racist magazine Searchlight. It was chaired by Victor Yates, the then MP for Ladywood. Shirley Joshi was active in the organisation as campaign secretary during the early 1960's.
CCARD was instrumental in organising the first major campaigns against the Bill that was to become the 1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act and was also strongly involved in campaigning for legislation to outlaw racial discrimination and incitement to racial hatred. The formation of CCARD was instigated by a meeting at Digbeth called by the West Indian Workers' Association and the Indian Youth League to protest against the suspected CIA murder of Patrice Lumumba, the leader of the Congolese revolution. It is worth mentioning that CCARD should not be confused with CARD (Campaign Against Racial Discrimination) - another anti-racist alliance which was not supported by the IWA (GB.)
In addition to the IWA many organisations were brought together within CCARD including: the West Indian Standing Conference, the West Indian Gazette, the Pakistani Workers Association, the Methodist Mission, the Movement for Colonial Freedom and the National Council for Civil Liberties. CCARD built links with the civil rights movement in the United States and during the 1960's many people visited and spoke at meetings, including guests from the Black Panther Movement. The IWA papers thus contain some material on the Black Panthers and other 'black power' organisations including publications such as the Black Liberation Front's 'Grass Roots' from the 1970's.
The pamphlet 'Smethwick- integration or racialism?' (1965) was written by Jagmohan Joshi, Maurice Ludmer and Shirley Fossick of CCARD.
During the 1960's Smethwick became infamous as 'Britain's most colour-conscious town' due to the activities of local Conservatives who placed 'race' at the heart of local politics and proposed a number of racially discriminatory policies. This notoriety prompted a visit by Malcolm X on 12th February 1965 who walked down Marshall Street where white residents had persuaded the Tory-run local council to buy properties and sell them to white families only. CCARD's pamphlet highlights the election in Smethwick and the wider debate on 'race' in Britain, calling for both legislation to make racial discrimination a criminal offence and a repeal of the 1962 Act.