Avtar Singh Jouhl

Avtar Singh Jouhl (2 November 1937 – 8 October 2022) was a British anti-racism campaigner, national president of the Indian Workers' Association (IWA), foundry worker and trade union lecturer.

His work campaigning to end the racial segregation in drinking establishments in Smethwick, West Midlands drew the attention of Malcolm X who visited the town, on 12 February 1965, and was taken to a segregated pub, the Blue Gates, with Jouhl and Indian activists to witness where non-white customers were forced to drink in separate rooms.

Biography

Early life and background Avtar Jouhl Singh was born on 2 November 1937 in Jandiala, a village named for a jand tree, within India's Jalandhar district.

Breaking the colour bar White left-wing students worked with IWA workers to challenge the colour bar. Jouhl campaigned to make it so that the Labour party and trade unions would support legislation opposing the colour bar and racial discrimination. following an invitation by Jouhl. where he observed posters reading "Coloured people need not apply". Malcolm X reacted by stating that, "This is worse than in America. This is worse than Harlem. In New York I haven’t seen such things, but there we have other attacks and discrimination against Black people." A plaque in Marshall Street has been erected marking the visit. Initially, the Desi pubs also provided their patrons with access to advice on legal, employment and marriage matters as well as offering a community fund for those who suffered hard times. Smethwick contains a rich array of Desi pubs and across the UK these are multicultural establishments for all.