UK Black Civil Rights Timeline (1940–1970)
Key events, figures, and legislation that shaped the Black civil rights movement in Britain
1940 – Colour bar on military officers begins to be dismantled
During the Second World War, sustained campaigning by groups such as the League of Coloured Peoples and the West African Students Union led to the removal of regulations preventing anyone not of “pure European descent” from becoming an officer in the British armed forces.
