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Jul 26 • 8 tweets • 4 min read
Black July in Black and White

🧵TW: Violence

A look at the photos from Black July

#BlackJuly1983 #BlackJuly #SriLanka #History #lka
"Mobs of Sinhala youth rampaged through the streets, ransacking homes, shops and offices, looting them and setting them ablaze, as they sought out members of the Tamil ethnic minority." - London Daily Telegraph
"In Pettah, the old commercial heart of the city, row after row of sari boutiques, electronic dealers, rice sellers, car parts stores, lie shattered and scarred..." - London Guardian
"Tamil Refugees at the harbor" (August 1983)
"Tamil Refugees disembarking in Jaffna" (August 1983)

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More from @HistoryCeylon

The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Jul 26
TW: Violence

When we look at the history behind Black July, its not only Sri Lankan Tamils that were affected. Indian Tamils also suffered during this tragic time. Here are some of the stories from then...
Nuwara Eliya (29 July 1983)
Nuwara Eliya (29 July 1983)
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The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Jul 25
Today in History (24-30 July 1983)

39 years ago, an Anti-Tamil Pogrom descended across Sri Lanka eventually escalating into mass violence killing thousands. This week, we'll be hearing the stories of the victims, trying to stop it from happening again.

#BlackJuly1983 #LKA
“While travelling on a bus when a mob laid siege to it, passengers watched as a small boy was hacked ‘to limb-less death.’ The bus driver was ordered to give up a Tamil. He pointed out a woman who was desperately trying to erase the mark on her forehead..."
-William McGowan (1/2)
"The woman’s belly was ripped open with a broken bottle and she was immolated as people clapped and danced. In another incident, two sisters, one eighteen and one eleven, were decapitated and raped, the latter ‘until there was nothing left to violate..'
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The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Apr 19
With the recent discussion of the #nationalanthem and the debate between singing it in #sinhala and #tamil, today we're going to take a look at the #history of this song seeing what we can take away from it's controversial past...

#EconomicCrisisLK #GoHomeGota2022 #Srilanka
Prior to Independence, the national anthem of Ceylon was 'God Save the King' - a fact of colonial rule which many despised. The Ceylon National Congress, one of the nation's independence organisations, vowed to create a new national anthem when the nation became independent.
When Ceylon achieved it needed a new national song so contest was set up to select one and a judging panel was set up. However there was resentment as "In a controversial decision, two of the panelists were declared winners...It began as – 'Sri Lanka Matha/Pala Yasa Mahima'"
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The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Apr 18
In our continued look at #protests and past civil disobedience in our #history, today we're covering the May Day Rallies and labour strikes of early 19th century #srilanka and seeing what we can learn from their success...

#GoHomeGota2022 #EconomicCrisisLK #GotaGoGama #lka ImageImageImage
The origins of these labour protests can be traced back to colonial rule. Many low-class native Sri Lankans worked in factories and estates while British business owners simply managed their monopolies. Wages were low, hours were long, and little to no facilities were provided. ImageImage
Across the globe during the 19th, people in these circumstances began demanding better rights. Many were inspired by the ideas of the ideals of the Buddhist Theological Society and the Sarasavi Sandaresa, the first unions were formed and teachers began striking in the 1890s. Image
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The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Apr 17
Happy Easter Everyone!

Today, we look back at the history of Easter to our nation's relationship to this holiday and how we can learn to come together on this day in the midst of the present crisis...

#srilanka #history #easter #eastersunday #EconomicCrisisLK #GoHomeGota2022
The Holiday celebrates the resurrection of Christ. According to the New Testament, this occurred 3 days after he was crucified in 30 AD. This holiday concludes the 40 day period of fasting that began with Lent.
Specifically for our nation, Christianity probably first arrived around 72 AD after St. Thomas visited Kerala and his teaching spread southward. However, most of the nation's Christian population came from conversions during the colonial period.
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The Sri Lankan History Project Profile picture
Apr 17
As we reflect on #COVID19 and realize how difficult the pandemic has been, let's take a look back at a past #pandemic in 1918 and learn about the parallels between them and how both affected our island nation...

#Srilanka #History #GoHomeGota #EconomicCrisisLK #SriLankaCrisis
As many of you may know, Spanish flu is not actually from Spain. There are many theories on where it actually began but many claim the source was Camp Funston in Kansas, USA. There it spread via WW1 troops to Spain were the uncensored press reported on it for the first time.
From there it spread across Europe into Russia and then into Asia. By June 1918, it was in India where it became know as 'Bombay Fever', killing 20 million people. By July, it had reached Colombo, coming from India by boat. Dock workers started showing signs of the disease.
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