When Learie Constantine first came to Nelson in 1929, the rag-and-bone man was the only other black man living in the town. Little kids from the school over the road used to peep in through the windows of Constantine’s house, trying to steal glimpses of their local cricket club’s new pro. They pointed at him in the street, asked him if he’d been working down a mine, whether he could wash it off with soap.

Hard as it was, Constantine decided that most of the racism he faced grew out of ignorance rather than spite. Most, but not all. As he found out when he met Jim Blanckenberg, the South Africa all-rounder he had replaced.

Blanckenberg had quit Nelson to take up a better offer from East Lancashire. There are stories about Blanckenberg. Like how, when they held a testimonial for Jack Iddon, Blanckenberg refused to drink with the great Jamaican batsman George Headley. “Where I come from,” he said, “we don’t fraternise with you fellows.”

Read more at The Guardian

In reply to CaribbeanCricket.com

CLR wrote a lot about Learie's experiences with racism in England.

In reply to Chrissy

learie was just the first.......apparently during the 80s tea, the most popular cricket team in the history of the sport wasn't immune from it.....whether it was geoff lawson telling viv racist things to fred goodall making racist jokes about the west indians at dinner parties to david frith describing us as the most unpopular team in the history of the sport and complaining about viv wearing the ites, gold and green wristband.....its sickening man