Paul Stephenson (civil rights campaigner)

Common card · No. 426255

Paul Stephenson (6 May 1937 – 2 November 2024) was a British community worker, activist and long-time campaigner for civil rights for the British African-Caribbean community in Bristol, England. As a young social worker, in 1963 Stephenson led a boycott of the Bristol Omnibus Company, protesting against its refusal to employ Black or Asian drivers or conductors. After a 60-day boycott supported by thousands of Bristolians, the company revoked its colour bar in August. In 1964 Stephenson achieved national fame when he refused to leave a public house until he was served, resulting in a trial on a charge of failing to leave a licensed premises. His campaigns were instrumental in paving the way for the first Race Relations Act, in 1965. Stephenson was a Freeman of the City of Bristol and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2009.

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