The creators of a play telling the shameful story of how the black boxer Cuthbert Taylor was prevented from competing for a British title because of his colour hoped it would give audiences pause for thought.
But they have been overwhelmed by the passionate reaction of young theatregoers who have launched a campaign demanding a formal apology from the sport’s governing body.
Hundreds of children from south Wales, where Taylor lived, have written letters to the British Boxing Board of Control calling on it to formally apologise for one of the sport’s enduring wrongs.
More than 300 children from 13 schools have so far sent letters and emails to the board after watching the play, The Fight, and they have been backed by Welsh politicians including the country’s culture minister, Jack Sargeant.
Although Taylor competed as a flyweight for Great Britain at the 1928 Olympics, his potential was never completely fulfilled because of the colour bar.
The bar, which ran from 1911 to 1948, said fighters had to have “two white parents” to compete for British titles. Born in 1909 in Merthyr Tydfil to a father of Caribbean descent and white Welsh mother, Taylor was not allowed to fight for a title.
Young people from schools in south Wales decided to call for an apology after watching the Neath-based Theatr na nÓg’s retelling of Taylor’s story.
One of the letters to the board reads: “We think that it is unfair that Cuthbert Taylor and other boxers without white, British parents were not allowed to fight for the British title. The colour bar was horrendous, horrific and disgraceful. It was not right then and it is not right now.”
It adds: “It was probably his dream to be the British boxing champion, but your colour bar stopped his dream from coming true.”
Schools that have written to the board include Cwmnedd primary in the Neath Valley, St Joseph’s Catholic junior, Port Talbot; Ysgol Gymraeg Santes Tudful in Merthyr Tydfil and Llanfaes community primary in Brecon. The number of schools involved continues to grow.
Aisling Brady Saunders, the deputy headteacher at St Joseph’s, said: “It was entirely the children’s idea to pen letters – they feel very strongly that Cuthbert Taylor, his surviving family and all boxers affected by the colour bar rule should have an apology.”
Geinor Styles, the writer of The Fight, said she had suspected the story would be compelling to young people. She said: “We have seen the power that true stories can play in overturning injustices, like the Post Office story. The Fight has been a humbling experience for us all, observing schoolchildren not only engage in a live theatrical performance but inspired to take positive action.
“I am surprised how the children have taken the initiative here but I have always believed that theatre has the power to change lives and this is a fine example. I would hope this will be a tipping point for an apology. After all, an apology costs nothing.”
Taylor’s grandson Alun Taylor said: “Our grandfather was denied his basic human rights because of the colour of his skin. Theatr na nÓg is giving him a voice, and in doing so they are giving our family a voice as well.”
Sargent said: “I am in full support of the pupils. I have requested a formal apology from the BBBC.”
A letter from the board to another of the schools, Ysgol Gymraeg y Cwm, acknowledges receipt of the letters and says: “We will be in contact again. Please pass on our thanks to the children.”
In response, the board said boxing was one of the “most diverse and inclusive sports” in the UK and acknowledged that the colour ban was wrong, but it declined to apologise.
It said: “Of course, the board acknowledges that the implementation of the ‘colour bar’ was discriminatory, and the board accepts this was wrong. Indeed, the British Boxing Board of Control condemn in the strongest terms the colour bar that existed in professional boxing between 1911 and 1948.”
But it said: “The suggestion of holding the current British Boxing Board of Control responsible for the decisions of past board members is deeply unsatisfactory. It is our view that any apology to the Taylor family regarding Cuthbert Taylor should be government-led as the ‘colour bar’ was imposed at the request of the [UK] government.”
The Fight has been performed to more than 4,600 children at the Dylan Thomas theatre in Swansea and this week is being staged at Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon.
