Akala – In Conversation – Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire

Gilded Baloon

As anyone who has watched Akala on TV or You Tube knows, he talks rapidly and makes quick astute links to the present and past state of racism, effects of colonialism and growing up black and under-privileged in the UK. Again and again hitting the nail on the head with his brilliant analyses. This was like that too, but this time there was an imperative for him to hurtle through an explanation of his new book – “Natives: Race and Class in The Ruins of Empire” – from beginning to end, aided by powerpoint slides, leaving space at the end for the audience to ask questions.

The show started slightly late which meant there seemed to be an even greater sense of urgency for Akala to get through all his material fast -covering issues from Caribbean culture and democracy, to racism in London schools and the injustices and privileged assumptions behind the legacy of empire. He was brilliant, and it was fantastic to see such an iconic speaker of our time on stage. It’s just a shame it all felt a bit rushed

Our 15 year old reviewer said, “What an amazing speaker, liked hearing about his childhood. He talked about so many interesting issues, found it hard to keep up sometimes though!”

(Toni Dickson)