Herbert Bankole-Bright

Herbert Bankole-Bright (23 August 1883 - 14 December 1958) was a politician in Sierra Leone.

Born in Okrika, then in Sierra Leone, Bright studied medicine at Edinburgh University before setting up a practice in Freetown.

In 1918, Bright set up the "Aurora" newspaper, which he edited until 1925. In 1920, he was a founder member of the National Congress of British West Africa, and in 1925 he inspired Ladipo Solanke's formation of the West African Students' Union, becoming a founder member. The same year, he became one of the first three elected members of the Legislative Council of Sierra Leone. With Ernest Beoku-Betts, he campaigned for increased suffrage and against racism, without success.

In 1939, following a feud with Isaac Wallace-Johnson, Bright supported government measures to limit the activities of Johnson's Youth Leagues. This alienated many of Bright's supporters, and he temporarily stepped down from politics.

In the 1940s, Bright founded the National Council of Sierra Leone, and it became the main opposition at the Sierra Leonean general election, 1951. After spending the next six years attempting to obstruct all government activities, the National Council lost all its seats at the 1957 election.

References

*"Bright, Herbert Christian Bankole-", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
*Hakim Adi, "West Africans in Britain: 1900-1960"