Gwendolyn Enid "Gee" Bernard[1] (29 December 1934 – 6 December 2016) was the first Black councillor for Croydon in London for the Labour Party.[2] She served from 1986 to 2002.
Early life and education
editBernard was born in 1934 in Jamaica[3][4][5] and grew up on a farm.[6] She later moved to England as a teenager[3][7] and studied at the University of North London and East London College,[4] qualifying as a social worker.[3]
Career
editIn 1980, she worked in the education department of Tower Hamlets Council[4] and was elected a member of the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) in 1981.[8]
In 1986, she was elected to the Croydon Borough Council for the ward of West Thornton, becoming its first black city councillor.[3] She represented the ward until 2002.[4]
In 1993, she founded the Croydon African and Caribbean Family Organisation (C.A.C.F.O),[3][4] which, amongst other things, provided education for children excluded from school.[9] In 1997, she organised parents in Croydon to crowdsource a register of children formally and informally excluded from school.[10]
Death
editSee also
edit- Jay Bernard (writer), grandchild of Gee Bernard
References
edit- ↑ "Trustees". Croydon African Caribbean Family Organisation UK. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ↑ Simon (8 December 2016). "Gee Bernard: Croydon's great Black activist dies". Operation Black Vote. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Croydon pioneer Gee Bernard will be sorely missed". Inside Croydon. 2016-12-10. Retrieved 2026-06-07.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Hon Alderwoman Gee Bernard". Your Croydon. 9 December 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ↑ Brook, Hilary; Smith, Lewis (July 16, 1993). "Feud between councillors deepens over 'racist' slur". Croydon Advertiser. p. 3. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via newspapers.com.
They want Coun Michael Wunn to apologize to Jamaican-born Gee Bernard.... Coun Bernard added: "I am British. I've been in London for 31 years. It's not for him to tell me to go home."
- ↑ Brook, Hilary (July 3, 1998). "Children with a lotta bottle have hours cut". Croydon Advertiser. p. 17. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via newspapers.com.
- ↑ Brook, Hilary; Smith, Lewis (July 16, 1993). "Feud between councillors deepens over 'racist' slur". Croydon Advertiser. p. 3. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via newspapers.com.
They want Coun Michael Wunn to apologize to Jamaican-born Gee Bernard.... Coun Bernard added: "I am British. I've been in London for 31 years. It's not for him to tell me to go home."
- ↑ "Interview with Gee Bernard". Oral Histories of the Black Women's Movement: The Heart of the Race Project (Interview). Interviewed by Hayley Reid. London, UK: Black Cultural Archives. March 2009. Archived from the original on 16 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
- ↑ Todman, Alice (2013-09-13). "Headmistress of Croydon X Factor star [Hannah Barrett], 'not surprised' at her success". South West Londoner. Retrieved 2026-06-07.
CACFO, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, was founded in 1993 by Councillor Gee Bernard (CQSW), Croydon's first elected black female MP.
- ↑ "'Lost' Pupils Wander Streets". Croydon Advertiser. May 2, 1997. p. 2. Retrieved 7 June 2026 – via newspapers.com.
- ↑ Sinclair, Leah (14 December 2016). "Croydon's First Black Councillor Passes Away". The Voice. Archived from the original on 16 December 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
External links
edit- Dominic Casciani (30 July 2003) "The pictures that reveal UK's hidden history BBC News.
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