2022 | A blue plaque for David Oluwale

In April 2022, a Blue Plaque honouring David Oluwale was unveiled on Leeds Bridge. The plaque had been proposed by the David Oluwale Memorial Association (DOMA) and was supported by the Leeds Civic Trust, as part of a new initiative to remember those who “achieved success but did not have, in their lifetime, the public’s respect and admiration that they deserved” (Leeds Civic Trust, 2022, p. 3).

The plaque included a quote by author Caryl Phillips: ‘The river tried to carry you away, but you remain with us in Leeds’ (Leeds Civic Trust, 2022). As well as referring to the circumstances of David Oluwale’s death, the quote evokes the importance of remembrance. This point was reiterated by Cllr Abigail Marshall Katung, Co-Chair of DOMA, at the unveiling. She said: ‘Leeds has no place for abuse and that’s why I believe we should always remember David Oluwale’ (Remember Oluwale, 2021)

The significance of the blue plaque

This memorial for David Oluwale solidified his position in the city of Leeds. Blue Plaques are installed as permanent signs to educate and inform the public. They were originally defined in 1867 as a “commemorative scheme” by the English Heritage organisation (English Heritage, 2022, p .2). The same ethos stands today. The plaque conveyed that David Oluwale deserved to be remembered. As DOMA member Abdullah Adekola put it, the plaque showed: “[David] is someone who lived here who experienced life here and that his story mattered, his life mattered” (Remember Oluwale, 2021).

The Blue Plaque scheme in Leeds contains around 180 plaques, but only a handful recognise the lives of people of colour. This made the plaque an important piece of history in its own right. Although David Oluwale’s story is a sad one, Emily Zobel Marshall, Co-Chair of DOMA, explained that: “If we only celebrate people that we consider to be important and stories that we only consider to be positive, we actually fail to acknowledge the past” (Remember Oluwale, 2021). By creating awareness of David Oluwale’s mistreatment, the Blue Plaque cements the message that racism and oppression are not welcome in Leeds.

The plaque also provided a physical connection to David Oluwale’s story. Leeds Bridge spans the River Aire, close to where David Oluwale was last seen and is thought to have been forced into the river.

Vandalism

David Oluwale’s Blue Plaque was not welcomed by all in Leeds. A few hours after the unveiling on 25 April, the plaque was stolen. The police were informed of the incident and treated it as a hate crime. The vandalism showed that contested views regarding David Oluwale’s story still exist, highlighting the change that is needed in Leeds to overcome the prejudices he faced.

But the vandalism did not stop David Oluwale from being remembered. The Leeds Civic Trust explains ‘the thief’s intentions to remove Oluwale from view … backfired’, as the vandalism only attracted more attention (Leeds Civic Trust, 2022, p. 19).

In the days that followed, the Yorkshire Evening post featured David’s plaque on the front page of their newspaper. Journalists such as the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford and the academic David Olusoga used their social media outlets to spread David Oluwale’s story. And the Blue Plaque soon became a virtual image of defiance, shown on the big screen in Millennium Square and on billboards by the advertising company JC Decaux.

He returned

On 23 October 2022, a new Blue Plaque was unveiled on Leeds Bridge. The replacement plaque was paid for by a crowd funder, which raised £3500 in four days with over 200 people contributing. The unveiling event itself was fully booked.

The unveiling was marked by a lively programme of events. This featured music from the steel pan duo Caribbean Breeze, a dance performance from the Yoruba Heritage Dance Troupe, speeches from local councillors and poetry readings. Ian Duhig read his poem ‘Forced’ Emily Zobel Marshall read her poem ‘He Returned’ in support of David Oluwale. This was followed by further commemoration at The Tetley arts centre. The event embraced David Oluwale’s culture, including Nigerian food by Tunto’s Aroma and hibiscus cheesecake provided by Marcia.

The event is another reason why the Blue Plaque has been so important to David Oluwale’s memory: its existence has led to events such as this, where a range of people can learn about Oluwale’s story and take something from it.