Great injustices are committed upon this land

Thursday music corner: British dub poet and activist Linton Kwesi Johnson (b. Jamaica, 1952) joined his mother in Brixton in 1963 and during his school and university years became increasingly concerned about racism in British society and politics. Graduating with a sociology degree from Goldsmiths College in 1973, Johnson began writing verse targeting the goal of black liberation. He also wrote for music publications in the 1970s including the New Musical Express, Melody Maker and Black Music. 

Johnson released his first album, Dread Beat an' Blood, in 1978, and has released over a dozen albums to date, plus several compilation albums. Reggae Fi' Peach appears on his 1980 album Bass Culture, and honours the memory of New Zealand-born teacher Blair Peach, who died in Southall on 24 April 1979 during an anti-fascist rally against the British National Front. The balance of evidence suggests that the police Special Patrol Group unit was responsible for Peach's death, and also obstructed official investigations to protect the killer. An official report into Peach's death was not made public until 2010, 31 years after the incident.

Linton Kwesi Johnson - Reggae Fi' Peach (live at the BBC, 03.10.81)

See also:

Music: Linton Kwesi Johnson - Peach Dub (1980)

Music: Linton Kwesi Johnson - Di Great Insohreckshan (1983)

Music: The Upsetters - Dollar In The Teeth (1969)