Affirming Difference and Reclaiming Integration: South Asian History in Glasgow’s Southside

The South Asian community has long been a part of Glasgow’s cultural make-up particularly in the Gorbals and Govanhill. Summer Jamal explores how the community’s history is rooted in colonial history and in doing so offers a contextual critique on traditional integration ideas.

Three lascars of the ‘Viceroy of India’ (1929), standing behind the wheel of one of the ship's tenders. Courtesy of the Waterline Collection, National Maritime Museum, London

By Summer Jamal

South Asian communities' connection to the UK  began with the exploitation of culture, people and resources – an unequal relationship in which India was forced to trade and act as a venture for the British Empire. All the while, Britain justified its violence, claiming an equal collaboration that was making the ‘natives’ more integrated into civilization. 

When Britain began the enterprise for economic prosperity and cultural prestige through the East India Company and later the British Crown, it relied greatly on the labour of the South Asian people it was oppressing. Scotland also played a significant role, with many visiting India and returning with people they employed as their servants. However, it was seamen, also known as lascars, that resulted in one of the largest introductions of South Asians to Britain. 

By arriving in Scotland as lascars, South Asians played an integral part in Britain's economic fortune. They worked on the ships that were returning from India, ensuring their mechanical and day-to-day function. Negligent working conditions led to the deaths of hundreds of men who were falsely considered better able to handle the heat in the engine rooms. They were seen as a cheaper option that could be exploited with far less retaliation as they were not part of unions. 

Once the ships arrived in Britain, the men desperately awaited their return home, while facing further degradation. Some lascars were provided with temporary accommodation in the Strangers' Home for Asiatics, Africans and South Sea Islanders. Eventually, many settled in Britain and it was these individuals that would form some of the first working-class South Asian communities in Britain. 

Glasgow was one of several cities where South Asians made their new home, with new arrivals settling in the Gorbals. Many began their journey with very little apart from ambition and hope. This ambition would not only motivate them to generate financial success but to formulate innate community bonds. 

South Asian communities' contribution to Scotland was notable but they were still met with hostility by many. This encouraged people to seek out the safety and inclusion of other South Asians. Building a network yielded benefits as a new arrival but it also became a necessary means of survival. However, despite the necessity for safety and the forceful alienation, these networks were viewed as a reluctance to integrate, a desire to hold onto familiarity and reject British people and culture. 

The reality was different. Although they remained in close proximity to other South Asians they were simultaneously establishing themselves as peddlers, opening up businesses and weaving their way into life in Scotland. In 1983, Yaqub Ali opened Castle Cash & Carry just off Cathcart Road, which would be the largest Cash & Carry in the whole of Europe. In 1984, Glasgow Central Mosque was built, the first of its kind built in Scotland. In 1970, Bashir Maan became Glasgow’s first Muslim City Councillor. 

Still today many look at the South Asian community as being detached from their communities. A study by researcher Stefano Bonino's which focuses on the experience of Muslims in Scotland states that Pollokshields is the most ethnically segregated area in Scotland and suffers from continuous discrimination and racism. He identifies the dual shop signs in Urdu and English as an example of this segregation. 

Read more: What do we mean by integration?

However, community identity is not so linear and definitely not about appearing identical. Community forms when cultures and identities are not only preserved but shared. Which is particularly important for marginalised communities who have had to fight for their culture and identities. bell hooks proclaimed:

“Beloved community is formed not by the eradication of difference but by its affirmation, by each of us claiming the identities and cultural legacies that shape who we are and how we live in the world”

Glasgow does indeed have issues of racism, which are often overlooked to perpetuate Scotland’s image of exceptionalism. However, maintaining close cultural proximity and linguistic connections does not indicate an inability to integrate. Integration does not have to mean erasure. There is always more that can be done to create closer community bonds and to tackle issues of racism, and social and economic deprivation but this does not begin with disregarding important parts of identity. 

Many South Asians may still be adorned in their shalwar kameez, and loyal to their traditional cuisines, but they are still integrating into Scotland. They, like many other migrants, have reclaimed integration so they do not have to abandon their cultures and traditions. It is important to create a community with local people but it is just as important to retain your identity.