Understanding racism in Britain 

Introduction

1. British racism is 400 years old. Around 1600, Elizabeth I thought there were too many blacks in London and wanted them deported. As usual, only the symptoms were observed and the victims blamed – the origins of the black presence (the dumping of seamen & slaves by ship masters) were not raised.

2. Racism is an instrument of social control – it serves to keep minorities in their place. Main sources of racism are the state institutions – police, courts, judges, prosecution service, prisons, immigration service.

3. The main inciters & propagators of race prejudice & hate are the media (especially the tabloids) & politicians.

4. Indigenous racist groups (BNP or NF) can terrorise minorities but are not banned.

5. Even state-sponsored reports that recommend curbing institutional racism & fostering multiculturism are shelved. Examples – Macpherson (1999) and Parekh (2000) reports.

6. The Church, part of the establishment, dispenses pious platitudes on race when a crisis occurs but will not challenge the state. It is certainly never in the forefront in efforts to eradicate racism. No senior politician or churchman will publicly condole with race victims or attend their funerals. Not a single senior establishment figure (state, church or media) will publicly deplore the constant harassment or racial attacks against minorities or refugees.

Nature of racist crime

Racism in Britain is systematic discrimination against people of colour. It is institutionalized – it is built into British society. For example, in mid-2001, 5% whites were unemployed vs 12% blacks. For Pakistanis & Bangladeshis, it was 18%. Black children are more likely to excluded from school than white. The police in every part of Britain are more likely to pick on blacks than white. Blacks are more likely to be sent to prison than white for the same offense.

There are thousands of racial incidents each year (harassment, attacks, killings, deaths in custody). 23,000 such incidents were reported to and recorded by the police in England & Wales (Parekh Report, pg 127) but of course far more incidents are not reported. The fact that assaults & killings involving Blacks & Asians evoke so little media interest and public outrage is the clearest indicator that racism is taken for granted, normalised, in the UK and Europe.

The very presence of a black person is enough to trigger race hate and provoke an attack (as in case of Stephen Lawrence at a bus stop) whereas a dog by contrast would evoke an affectionate response. So what does this say of the mind of a racist and the values of a society that produces these racists? How does one explain this inversion of Christian values?

The constant racist harassment, abuse and discrimination encountered by Black people in their daily lives create great mental and psychological distress, loss of self-worth and a barrier to total fulfillment. Eradicating racism does not require bureaucracies, special departments, lofty intellectual analysis. What’s called for is a change of heart, an acknowledgment of the common humanity of all people, the practice of the teachings of Christianity. Racism is ultimately sanctioned or tolerated by those with power. Supporting victims is fine but that is dealing with the effects.

 “Without recognising that racism is institutional, ingrained in legislation and in administrative polices at central and local level, all the equal opportunity policies in the world are doomed to failure.”

The causes, agents & persistence of racism

A productive debate on race & equality must address the causes that give life to racism and to the principal entities that fuel discrimination and race crime.

The state has the greatest power to oppress minorities in many ways as well as bring about change.

Institutional discrimination [eg by the media, employers or state institutions] is the bedrock of the racist system.

Politicians and the national media (nearly all of them rightwing) have little sympathy for minorities and in fact have stoked up race hate by railing against the weakest and most vulnerable (asylum seekers, state benefit holders, etc). No senior politician or church cleric will publicly condemn a race attack or death in police custody, or attend the funeral of the victim or condole with the relatives.

Dr Suman Fernando, author of Mental Health, Race & Culture , has written::
"Racism has been socially constructed over hundreds of years. Current notions of race are an integral part of the history of western Europe... Racism is an integral part of western culture, especially in the English speaking countries. It not not be seen as a deviancy from the norms of the culture. On the contrary, it is central to it.

"Skin colour is used as an inflexible social marker for racism: to assign rights, to oppress and exploit.

"Racism persists because it is required by the powerful groups for psychological and political reasons, so they can divide, rule, oppress and control the more numerous but weaker races... Race may be a biological myth but it is a social reality."

Racism an instrument of social control & exclusion

What Ethnic Minorities legitimately expect from the State & the Media

·       to co-exist as equals with the indigenous people of Britain,

·       their histories and achievements to be given due recognition in education, public libraries, etc

·       to have reasonable access to the media and be depicted fairly,

·       to be  treated justly by the police & the justice system,

·       to feel safe and secure in their homes and in public places.

Minorities are ‘kept in their place’ by 

 - excluding them from positions of power in state & private institutions,
 - severely restricting their access to the media,
 - having their reality being defined by ‘experts’, having to put up with the stereotypes &
   misinformation propagated by the media,
 - condoning discriminatory  treatment by the police & courts,
 - having to live with a social environment of hostility, fear and insecurity.

A government report, Ethnicity & Victimisation (1998), found that “Asians avoid pubs, night clubs and football matches because they are terrified of racist violence”. Likewise,  travelling late at night deters many going to the theatre or cinema.

Some guidelines
Public education programmes, clever posters or pious exhortations will not eradicate a virus so deeply entrenched over centuries. Fundamental & systemic changes are called for.

·       Attitudes must change - not by race awareness training (RAT) but anti-racist training (ART),

·       recruitment & promotion practices must be based on merit, not on race or class,

·       minorities must define their own reality, not be interpreted by ‘experts’,

·       the market driven media (which do so much thinking for the people) need to present a fairer & more balanced picture of minorities & Third World societies,

·       racist organisations should be banned - as recommended by the UN Committee (1993),

·       minorities must feel safe and at ease in public places,

·       they must not feel targeted by the police,

·       race crimes must be taken seriously,

·       the Christian Churches must wake up to their obligations on race issues.

So why is it difficult to change?
Attitude change requires reviewing our value systems. Here most of us fail. We may use the correct rhetoric but how can the heart change?
1. We may be unaware that have unacceptable or prejudicial attitudes
2. We may resent them being exposed or challenged, particylarly by those we consider our subordinates or inferiors.
3. We are often so well defended that we are not even prepared to admit we have prejudices. Nobody is gong to humiliate us.

Nobody likes to being questioned about our basic beliefs or policies especially if we hold authority. Our prejudices are betrayed by our value-laden statements, dwelling on negatives or thinking of others in stereotypes.

Reference

1. Parekh Report: The Future of Multi-Ethnic Britain (Profile Books 2000)

2. Suman Fernando, Mental Health, Race & Culture, Macmillan MIND, 1991