2019 | 50th Anniversary Events

April 2019 was the 50th anniversary of David Oluwale’s death. To mark the occasion, the David Oluwale Memorial Association (DOMA) organised a programme of events to remember his life and mark his death. It was the widest-ranging memorial yet. This page shows some of the forms it took.

Poster campaign

Between April and June, one hundred large posters of David Oluwale’s face were installed around Leeds. This campaign was directed by Rasheed Araeen, the first artist to respond to David Oluwale’s drowning. The posters raised questions as there was no text to contextualise the image. This was very deliberate. DOMA hoped the campaign would create public interest in learning about the mysterious man who was showing up around the city (Remember Oluwale, n.d.).

The mystery certainly caught the interest of the local press. The Yorkshire Evening Post published an article in which they give a brief overview of what happened to David Oluwale as well as some information about the campaign (Macdonald, 2019). Such coverage was essential to promoting the 50th anniversary events organised by DOMA, but also forced readers to confront a shameful moment in Leeds’s past.

The Rasheed Araeen posters were a significant milestone in the timeline of Remembering Oluwale because they were the first time that David Oluwale’s image had been so prominently displayed (Macdonald, 2019). This made the 50th anniversary a special commemoration as people were forced to recognise the man that their city had ignored for decades.

The posters were supplemented by a parallel campaign advertising all the 50th anniversary events.

Poets for David Oluwale

There is a long history of using poetry to remember David Oluwale so it was fitting that the anniversary events included a poetry reading. On 17 April 2019, Jackie Kay, Zaffar Kunial and Ian Duhig recited poems that touched on some of the issues David Oluwale encountered as a homeless, mentally ill, black man in Britain. The event was organised by DOMA in collaboration with the School of English at the University of Leeds.

In between the poems, time was dedicated to a discussion between the poets and people in the audience. This gave the participants an opportunity to express themselves and their own connections to David Oluwale’s story. In his response to one question, Ian Duhig stated that he would want David to know that he lived long after his death and had created beauty out of the horrors he faced (Remember Oluwale, 2020a).

This was a beautiful event in which the poets and the audience were able to reflect on David Oluwale’s life in an artistic environment. The final poem of the event was about remembering a friend and was a poignant finale to an event dedicated to remembering David Oluwale (Remember Oluwale, 2020a).

Graveside vigil

The 50th anniversary gave a chance to mark David Oluwale’s death. The graveside vigil held on 18 April 2019 was a stark contrast to the lonely welfare funeral held in 1969.

The vigil included a chance to both mourn and celebrate Oluwale. It included songs and poetry as well as discussion of the challenges he faced during his time in Leeds. John Battle (the Chair of DOMA) explained that it was important for Leeds to recognise David as part of the city’s history so that his experiences can help shape its future (Remember Oluwale, 2020b).

This message was echoed by Carl Galvin, the son of Gary Galvin, the police whistle blower who raised concerns about David Oluwale’s death and sparked the investigation that led to the trial of Geoffrey Ellerker and Kenneth Kitching. Galvin reflected on his father’s actions and the dire consequences he faced for speaking out on behalf of David Oluwale. He stressed that Leeds had to recognise the less desirable aspect of its history in order to improve the services provided to people in need (Remember Oluwale, 2020b).

The vigil also gave the Nigerian community the opportunity to mourn a member of their community who has been ignored for so long. Standing beside David Oluwale’s grave allowed diverse groups of Leeds people to mourn, commemorate and celebrate the life of a man who was victimised at the hands of those whose job was to protect.

Walking David Oluwale's Leeds

Joe Williams and Juwon Ogungbe led a walking tour around Leeds where they visited important locations from David Oluwale’s life.

The participants were given a map which listed 47 places around the city as well as photographs of Leeds when David Oluwale lived there. At each stopping point, Williams provided information about Oluwale while Ogungbe performed specially written songs inspired by David’s story. The group also carried several large posters of Oluwale’s face, bringing his presence back into the centre of the city (Remember Oluwale, 2020c).

Reflecting on David Oluwale’s life and commemorating his death were the main objectives for this event, but it was also an opportunity to discuss histories of racism and colonialism, which are usually absent from heritage events in Leeds.

The David Oluwale Memorial Association produced a short film about the walking tour. It includes a poignant scene where Max Farrar can be seen tying flowers to a gate next to the River Aire. The act is both emotional and symbolic because it brings attention to the exact place where David Oluwale’s life came to an end.

The Secret Library

The anniversary of David Oluwale’s death was also marked by public history students at Leeds Beckett University.

Nina Whitfield was part of a group of students who worked on an earlier version of our module. She followed this up by writing about David Oluwale for the Leeds Libraries Heritage Blog. Her post included important details about David Oluwale’s life and was both a memorial and an educational resource aimed at informing the reader about this aspect of Leeds’s history.

Due to the nature of the website and the lack of sources about David Oluwale’s life, the author was unable to include everything about his experiences. Nevertheless, the blog is factual, concise and a great overview of David Oluwale’s story. Whitfield also makes a strong argument for why David Oluwale needs to be remembered. You can read her blog post here.