Unsung heroes of the Caribbean who fought for Britain against Hitler

Roy Greenslade (The Guardian) writes about the unsung heroes of the Caribbean who fought for Britain against Hitler. These veterans will be highlighted in a television program that marks the 70th anniversary of VE day: Fighting for king and empire: Britain’s Caribbean heroes. The film reveals how thousands of men and women from the Caribbean volunteered to join the fight against Hitler. “From meager savings they paid their own passage to risk their lives,” but their contribution to World War II has largely been forgotten. Broadcast as part of the BBC’s commemoration of VE day, the film is being screened by BBC4 at 9:00pm on Wednesday, May 13.

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The Top Five African Games

These days, “child’s play” seems to be about online gaming, from Playstations to Nintendos. But many might recall the days when children congregated outdoors, playing their favourite games in the street. They were free and required little or no equipment. Apart from being fun, they also helped build fundamental skills, from social interaction to physical hand-eye co-ordination and even basic maths and strategic thinking. Here’s our list of some of the most popular traditional African games played by children across the continent.

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Robert Smalls War Hero and Legislator (1839-1915)

Robert Smalls began life as a slave in Beaufort, South Carolina on 5 April 1839, born to Robert and Lydia Smalls. Lydia was a house servant for her master, plantation owner John K. McKee and, according to American Eras, "McKee was probably Smalls' father." McKee had brought Lydia, a slave born on the Ashdale Plantation, to his home on Prince Street in Beaufort to look after his five children.

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Black in Persian Gulf (Afro-Iraqis and Afro Iranians)

The Trans-Saharan trade, which flourished from the eighth century AD through the 1840s, brought African labor to the hazardous enterprises of pearl diving, date farming and the raw, brutal work of clearing Iraqi salt marshes. African boys were commonly castrated to serve as eunuch guards of royal harems. Unlike those who were enslaved in the West, however, blacks enslaved in the Arabic-speaking world also served as guards, sailors and high-ranking soldiers. In the 19th century, Basra was one of the most profitable slave ports in the region, commonly offering slave traders as much as 50% returns upon their "investments."

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