Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
9-2024
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Program
History
Advisor
Timothy Alborn
Advisor
Dagmar Herzog
Committee Members
Julia Sneeringer
James Cantres
Claire Langhamer
Subject Categories
Cultural History | European History | History of Gender | Other History | Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies
Keywords
Britain, race, gender, sexuality, empire, war
Abstract
The interwar period, World War II, and the Windrush era present three major turning points in the evolution of what has become known as the making of a “multiracial” Britain. During these years, British public discourse became increasingly preoccupied with relationships between Black men and white women. This discourse became global in scope and Black activists across the Anglophone world took part in shaping the narratives and meanings projected onto these relationships. By charting the shifting boundaries of racial acceptance and gendered mores, this project demonstrates the predominantly performative and extremely conditional nature of Britain’s “acceptance” of men of color. It shows how interracial relationships forced various constituencies in Britain to reinterpret their relationship to space, nation, empire, and belonging. It also explores how the perception of white British women who slept with Black men changed in ways that mirrored the changing perceptions of race in general. Interracial relationships provide the basis to explore larger questions of race, gender, and national identity in the twentieth century.
Recommended Citation
Makowski, Stephanie, "“Intimacy in the End Means Trouble”: Interracial Relationships in Britain from Interwar to Windrush" (2024). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/5917
Included in
Cultural History Commons, European History Commons, History of Gender Commons, Other History Commons, Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons