John Alcindor (8 or 9 July 1873 – 25 October 1924) was a physician and activist from

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

who settled in London. He is known for his role in the African Progress Union, of which he became president in 1921.

Life and career

Alcindor was born in

Port of Spain Port of Spain (Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a municip ...

, Trinidad, where he was educated at Saint Mary's College; after winning one of the four Island Scholarships he went to study medicine at

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1582 ...

, Scotland, graduating from there with a medical degree in 1899. He then worked in London hospitals, in Plaistow,

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

and

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

, going into practice on his own around 1907. At this period he played cricket, as a

wicket keeper The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being watchful of the batsman and ready to take a catch, stump the batsman out and run out a batsman when occasion arises. T ...

for London teams. In 1911 he married Minnie Martin, a white British woman. Refused a place in the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

, Alcindor was awarded a Red Cross medal for his work with the wounded at London rail stations during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Alcindor served as senior district

medical officer A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

of the London borough of

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...

from 1921 until his death. As a medical officer he worked under the

Poor Law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...

which meant that he could offer free treatment for poor people in their homes. Alcindor was also the secretary of the

Poor Law Medical Officers Association The Poor Law Medical Officers Association was formed in 1868 by a merger of the Poor Law Medical Reform Association and the Association of Metropolitan Workhouse Medical Officers. Joseph Rogers was the founder and for some time president. See ...

. He is the great-uncle of

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem (alternatively spelled Karim or Kerim) ( ar, کریم) is a common given name and surname of Arabic origin that means "generous", "noble", "honorable". It is also one of the Names of God in Islam in the Quran. Given name Karim * Karim A ...

(born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr.).

Research

Alcindor published articles on his research on

influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...

and

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. He also wrote about the correlation between cancer and poverty, examining the effects of unhealthy surroundings and poor diet.

Activism

Alcindor associated in the late 1890s with the group around

Henry Sylvester Williams Henry Sylvester-Williams (24 March 1867 or 15 February 186926 March 1911) was a Trinidadian lawyer, activist, councillor and writer who was among the founders of the Pan-African movement. As a young man, Williams travelled to the United States ...

and his

African Association The Association for Promoting the Discovery of the Interior Parts of Africa (commonly known as the African Association), founded in London on 9 June 1788, was a British club dedicated to the exploration of West Africa, with the mission of discove ...

. They were behind the

First Pan-African Conference The First Pan-African Conference was held in London from 23 to 25 July 1900 (just prior to the Paris Exhibition of 1900 "in order to allow tourists of African descent to attend both events").Ramla Bandele"Pan-African Conference in 1900", Article ...

in 1900, which he attended in London, as a delegate from the Afro-West Indian Society. At the conference he met composer Samuel Coleridge‐Taylor and W. E. B. Du Bois with whom he later developed friendships. Alcindor became the second president of the African Progress Union in 1921, succeeding John Archer. Alcindor presided on the first day of the 2nd Pan-African Congress in 1921, with Rev. W. H. Jernagin. He spoke at the 3rd Pan-African Congress in 1923.

Legacy

In July 2014 a blue heritage plaque in Alcindor's honour, organised by the

Nubian Jak Community Trust Nubian Jak Community Trust (NJCT) is a commemorative plaque and sculpture scheme founded by Jak Beula that highlights the historic contributions of Black and minority ethnic people in Britain. The first NJCT heritage plaque, honouring Bob Marley, ...

, was unveiled at the site of Alcindor's surgery, which is now the Medical Centre in Harrow Road, Paddington."John Alcindor: the famous black doctor of Paddington and WWI local hero"
British Red Cross.

Life and career

Research

Activism

Legacy

References

Further reading