Scottish university honours J’can Sir Geoff Palmer

LONDON: Hundreds of persons paid their respects to Jamaica-born professor, Sir Geoff Palmer, during his memorial service earlier this month. The former chancellor of Heriot-Watt University was a scientist and human rights activist, who became Scotland’s first black professor.

Sir Geoff Palmer died in June, aged 85, following his battle against prostate cancer. During the service held at the St Giles’ Cathedral in the Scottish city of Edinburgh mourners were reminded of the Jamaican’s remarkable life. The service featured personal tributes, speeches, and musical performances from the Heriot- Watt University’s Chamber Choir and guest musicians, led by composer Dr Shirley Thompson. During the service Catherine Bisset, the daughter of Sir Geoff Palmer, thanked guests for their attendance, while recounting her father’s brilliance. Relating her father’s impact on the life of his children, she said: “It wasn’t what dad taught us or what he told us that had the greatest impact it was what he showed us.

“We watched how fearless he was when confronting untruths. We observed how he silenced his critics with his use of evidence and by asking his critics to produce evidence to support their statements.”

She added: “We also saw how effective it was when he used humour and relatable examples to tell difficult stories about our past, and how we saw how grateful people were that someone had told them about that part of their history.”

The actor, writer and researcher also related how the family observed their father’s determination and focus that kept him working through the ‘ravages of cancer’.

“He showed his children that racism and prejudice cannot erase our achievements or our humanity or the truth and how education and our achievements are a form of resistance against those who seek to undermine us,” said Bisset.

“In fact this had such a huge impact on me that I wrote a play about it and there’s actually a line in the script that attempts to capture exactly this message when an enslaved washerwomen tells her daughter in no uncertain terms that making a mark they cannot wash out is the most powerful form of resistance of all, but perhaps most importantly it was my dad’s ability to engage with this (Scotland’s) wonderful diverse and expansive community so brilliantly that showed we belong to a wider family, one human family.”

MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

In tribute to Sir Geoff, the University has created a new scholarship in his honour –The Sir Geoff Palmer Memorial Scholarship for a student of Jamaican descent or citizenship. It reflects Sir Geoff’s dedication to opportunity, inclusion, and the belief that every student deserves the chance to thrive.

To achieve the scholarship’s objectives £25,000 is being raised.

Professor Richard A. Williams, principal and vice-chancellor of Heriot-Watt University, said: “Sir Geoff’s life and values continue to inspire our work at Heriot-Watt and far beyond, and we will carry forward his vision of education, scholarship and justice as a lasting tribute to his extraordinary life.

“In a lasting tribute to his memory, we have launched the Sir Geoff Palmer Memorial Scholarship, to support a student to follow in his footsteps; breaking barriers, pursuing excellence, and shaping a fairer future.”

City of Edinburgh Lord Provost Robert Aldridge was among those at the celebration on Friday. Speaking afterwards, he said: “It was an honour and privilege to offer a short reflection on Sir Geoff’s impact upon our capital at today’s service. This was a tall order, as he achieved so much, and influenced so many people and places. “With his gentle manner, Sir Geoff had the ability to persuade policy makers, political leaders, and community leaders alike, of the benefits and richness of equality and diversity – and that we should be able to live in harmony, with mutual understanding and respect for different traditions and heritages.”

The academic was knighted in 2014 for services to human rights, science and charity, and last year were appointed to the Order of the Thistle, Scotland’s greatest order of chivalry. Born in the parish of St. Elizabeth in 1940, Sir Geoff moved to London aged 14 as part of the Windrush generation and then to Edinburgh in the 1960s, where he completed a PhD in grain science and technology.