Racial Discrimination Issues - Essay Example

Discrimination Overt racism has seen somewhat of a decline over the past 60 years but continues to afflict many different types of peoples in all parts of Britain despite any assertions to the contrary. We now have increased representations of ethnic minorities in universities, as MP’s and in other positions of authority within the government as well as higher percentages in various forms of the media. This societal evolution of inclusion, however, has been dreadfully gradual and not been at a sufficient pace so as to satisfy those of the minority ethnicity. Britain was an openly racist society in 1959 when a black man, Kelso Cochrane, was lynched in London streets with little more than an apathetic response from police. The perpetrators of this crime were identified by several eyewitnesses but the four white men were simply interviewed and released. Racist murders continue to take place, such as the Anthony Walker ice axe incident in Wales last summer, but this type of senseless racially motivated murder is now viewed by society as a horrific crime against a human being and not as simply a byproduct of ‘purifying’ Britain. Beginning with the Cochrane lynching, attitudes began to change. This general intolerance of racially motivated crime has gained momentum over the past 10 years following a series of attacks resulting in the murders of Roland Adams, Stephen Lawrence and Kriss Donald. Inner cities were the usual center of racial issues but now in Britain “there has been a shift in the geography of public disquiet, and it is the small provincial towns on the coast like Margate, Dover and Hastings that have become the centre of concern about illegal immigration and asylum” (Back, 2003). While the point can be argued that there is less overt racism now than there was 10 years ago, there has been a resurgence of widespread unsympathetic reporting in both local and national print media which portrays refugees as ‘beggars’ and involved in ‘violent crime.’ This reflects the new surge of racist sentiments across the nation. This discussion examines racism in Britain, causes for the phenomenon and various reasonings for its continuance. Those of ethnic minority are more likely than whites to live in depressed neighbourhoods, suffer ill health, live in congested housing and suffer a higher rate of unemployment even when compared to white people of similar education and employment qualifications. The majority of violence motivated by racism takes place in economically depressed locations although it is not uncommon in city centres and in more prosperous areas as well. Racist hostility is to some degree a manifestation of racism combined with the social inequality within which perpetrators themselves are trapped. Economic deprivation does not directly motivate race crimes but is a substantial predisposing dynamic. “There is in a cycle of racism, marginalization, low wages and high unemployment, urban segregation and increased risk of victimisation, all of which reinforce social exclusion” (Sibbitt, 1997). Economic deprivation operates as instigator in conjunction with other stimulus such as sociological aspects, preconceptions of differing races derived as children from adults and representations of ethnic minorities projected by various media types. “The general theory suggests that threats to the social bond come either from excessive closeness or ‘engulfment’ or, more relevantly for this analysis, from isolation and separation, in which the parties mutually misunderstand or reject each other” (Ray et al, 2004). In either instance, the consequence is feelings of estrangement from mainstream society, accompanied by shame which in turn leads to humiliation-induced rage and aggression. The recipients of this rage are those who could be perceived as ‘lower’ on society’s economical, cultural or racial rung than the recognized ‘white’ population. Simply put, those with a low self esteem believe that they can elevate themselves by perceiving other groups as inferior. This, fueled by an encouragement of racist elements, can lead to racially motivated crimes. The topic of racism is one that involves a subject of many manifestations and reaches across various complex subjects. Recent examinations of this issue point to a newly developing variety of racism that is focused specifically toward immigrants. Researchers commonly refer to this as the ‘racialisation’ of particular ethnic groups. This growing form of cultural racism portrays particular ethnic groups in conflicting ways. They are described as both inferior thus contaminating the very framework of society yet, at the same time, a potent and menacing force and thus a threat to the security of the country. In addition, “the more ‘racial’ categories are culturally inflected, the less they are based only on (physical disparities) between people and the more ‘race’ overlaps ‘ethnicity’” (Raxen, 2001). The rising public resentment and the resulting violent actions against those that seek asylum is an illustration of ‘racialisation’ because these people are targeted simply by means of their migration status and not from their ethnic, cultural, or religious background. Further, “fears associated with ‘asylum seeking’ become coded means of articulating anxieties about more diffuse ‘threats’ and fears about economic competition and cultural pollution, that may have heightened since September 11th 2001” (Raxen, 2001). Parliament’s policies regarding the dispersing of asylum seekers have angered many and have instigated local anti-immigration crusades which have sparked a number of violent incidents. A typical example is the June 2003 confrontations in Wrexham (North Wales). Approximately 30 Iraqi refugees had made their home in a section of Wrexham for about a year when police were called to break up a fight between Iraqis and residents. This incident began violent quarrels between Iraqi refugees, who, armed with baseball bats and metal sticks, fought continuous battles with similarly equipped residents and the police. The confrontation culminated in more than 100 police officers sporting riot gear called in to quell the situation. Immediately following this incident, the majority of the refugees had to be taken by the council to secure lodging in another location. Local citizens interviewed in the media articulated bitterness and were vocally critical of refugees who were generally viewed as “better off than our people’, ‘driving Mercedes cars and throwing money around” (Raxen, 2001). Anti-Semitism has been shown to be growing in the U.K. as well. According to the Community Security Trust (CST), 89 anti-Semitic incidents took place in Britain during the first 90 days of 2003 which was a 75 per cent increase on the first three months of the previous year when 52 incidents occurred. In March 2003 alone, 43 anti-Semitic incidents occurred, the highest total for the month of March in 11 years. The year 2002 saw a 13 per cent increase from 2001. The CST considers that this sizeable rise in incidents “coincided with the war in Iraq as the anti-war movement linked the issue of Iraq, on the one hand, and events in Israel and Palestine, on the other hand” (Community Security Trust, 2003). According to the CST, 11 of the anti-Semitic incidents which occurred in the first quarter of 2003 happened on university campuses. Another assessment of the anti-Semitic situation argues that the increase in hate crimes against Jews in the last two years is ‘a very weak indicator of the prevailing national climate of anti-Semitism.’ Instead, they assert that there is a “new anti-Semitism’ that does not primarily manifest itself on British streets, nor is it a genocidal, deep-seated, visceral hatred of individual Jews but it has taken hold they argue among ‘cognitive elites’ within the news media, churches, universities, and trades unions. Couched as criticism of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, this Judeophobia is nonetheless an assault on the essence of the Jewish collectivity, and deploys disparaging stereotypes about Jews that are a throw-back to the old anti-Semitism” (Iganski & Kosmin, 2003). In 2001, the New Statesman ran a story, ‘A Kosher Conspiracy?’ accompanied by a drawing of a gold Star of David stabbing a supine Union Jack on its front cover. The Independent, a British daily broadsheet, published a cartoon in 2003 that achieved a similar notoriety. On National Holocaust Remembrance Day, it pictured a naked Ariel Sharon, (Prime Minister of Israel) biting the head off of a Palestinian child. This provoked criticisms which accused these publications of inciting anti-Semitism. It could be argued that these stories are simply and exclusively critical of Sharon but are not anti-Semitic. However, the disposition of this reason is that stereotypes of ‘Jewish global influence’ and ‘conspiracies’ are brought into play in ways suggestive of traditional conceptions of anti-Semitism. Iganski and Kosmin (2003) argue that “Judeo-phobia in contemporary Britain is not an organized conspiracy but does constitute an opportunistic coalition of interest for the radical Left, the far right and radical Islamists. However, more systematic content analysis of a representative sample of publications (ideally by contrast with an earlier period) would be needed to evaluate the extent and novelty of this anti-Semitism.” Increased numbers of attacks on Muslims and Islamic property were reported following September 11. Other reports indicate a rising number of attacks on those of the Islamic faith, especially since the beginning of the Iraq War. The Muslim News accumulates reports of violence, harassment and discrimination against Muslims. According to it, there were attacks on a number of mosques, including one in West Yorkshire during March of 2003. The Islamic Human Rights Commission maintains that “Britain’s Muslims are living in an atmosphere of heightened hostility and mistrust’ and that increasing attacks reported by Muslim outreach workers may not be reflected in official figures. Moreover, a large number, possibly the majority, of asylum seekers are Islamic, so the issues of Islamophobia and the panic over asylum overlap with one another” (Commission on Muslims and Islamophobia, 2001). Racism can manifest as individual or group acts and attitudes or institutionalised processes that lead to disparities. “Disparities between ethnic minority and majority groups in housing, education, arrests, and court sentencing are believed to be due to racism, not simply to economic forces” (Virdee, 1995). Racism, although thought by some to have been largely abandoned years ago, remains widespread not only in the actions but in the minds of people. In one national survey in the United Kingdom, “25-40 percent of participants said they would discriminate against ethnic minorities; an estimated 282,000 UK crimes were racially motivated in 1999; and a third of people from ethnic minorities constrain their lives through fear of racism” (Chahal, 1995). Racism, labeled by many as a sort of ‘sickness of the mind’ causes actual illness among those being harassed and otherwise affected by discriminatory actions. In the United States, where a long history of racism has been well documented, cross sectional studies in the report “associations between perceived racial discrimination and hypertension, birth weight, self related health, and days off sick” (Krieger, 2000). Racism may be associated with illness at an ecological level. A study found that a “1 percent increase in racial disrespect in a U.S. state was associated with an increase of 350.8 per 100,000 in ‘black’ all cause mortality” (Kennedy et al, 1997). A recent study from here in the U.K. revealed that victims of discrimination were more likely to experience “respiratory illness, hypertension, a long term limiting illness, anxiety, depression, and psychosis. People who believed that most companies were discriminatory were also at increased risk of mental illness” (Karlsen, 2002). In a study of over 4800 people (who did not have any type of mental or psychological disorders), those that had experienced overt forms of discrimination were twice as likely to develop adverse psychotic indications within a three-year period. This supports the hypothesis that discrimination affects psychological health. “Stress mediated responses in the neuro-endocrine and immune systems have been considered possible mechanisms for the effects of racism on health” (King, 1995). Not only does racism affect the health of those it is directed against, it also can be extremely stressful for the perpetrator of the act in that it serves to deepen their already low self esteem and lack of self respect. Racist acts also initiate stress in society as a whole as it leads to the concern that the country may be perceived as a racist nation and the implications of growing violent clashes. The end effects of racism at a community level such as the structure of gang cultures for example, or the conception and preservation of socioeconomic inequalities have rarely been represented. Information regarding the ‘hidden’ aspects of racism such as health problems associated with it has, to date, been sparse. “The effects of racism on future generations for example, on the long term impact of having a parent with an illness have not been addressed either. The effects of racism are modified by individual coping styles and expectations, community structure and response to racism, historical and macro-political factors” (King, 1995). The exploration of identifiable causes for illness within ethnic minority groups is vital if researchers are to develop equity and thus credibility within their studies. For example, “is the poorer response to antihypertensive treatment in African-Caribbeans due to biology or is it a reflection of the role of perceived racism in its development and persistence?” (“Race Relations”, 2000). Providing credible, scientific data which proves that racism is responsible for health problems would be an imperative step in developing a more defined research program and a thus an enhanced response from health services. It shifts the debate towards preventions and the burden on societal structures regarding rates of poor health. Investigation of racism’s pathological, cognitive, or physiological correlations may offer new opportunities for therapy and more effective health management. “Developing a deeper understanding of possible links between racism and health is a prerequisite for initiatives to decrease impact at a community and individual level” (“Race Relations”, 2000). This discussion has provided various studies and reports which suggest that acts of racially motivated violence are rooted deep within complex social, cultural and economic structures. People of ethnic minority have a much higher propensity to be on the short end regarding almost all areas regarding social inclusion/exclusion. The possibility of racial persecution increases with people of low income who experience these feelings of social exclusion. Despite universal agreement that racism is inappropriate and immoral, no determined political effort has been attempted in an effort to decrease its propensity for escalation. Many turned their back to an escalation of racism about 70 years ago in another country. No argument could be stronger asking for a public and political reversal to this disturbing trend. References Back, L. (2003). “Falling from the Sky.” Patterns of Prejudice. Vol. 37, No. 3, pp.341-53. Chahal K. & Julienne L. (1999). We can’t all be white!: Racist Victimisation in the UK. London: YPS. Commission on British Muslims and Islamophobia. (2001). Addressing the Challenge of Islamophobia. Progress Report 1999-2001: London. Community Security Trust. (2003). Annual Antisemitic Incidents. London. Retrieved 11 June, 2006 from Iganski, P. & Kosmin, B. (Eds.). (2003). The New Antisemitism? Debating Judeophobia in 21st-Century Britain. London: Profile Books. Karlsen, S. & Nazroo, J. (2002). “Relation Between Racial Discrimination, Social Class, and Health among Ethnic Minority Groups.” Am J Public Health. Vol. 92, pp. 624-31. Kennedy, B.; Kawachi, I.; Lochner, K.; Jones, C.; & Prothrow-Stith, D. (1997). “(Dis)respect and Black Mortality.” Ethn Dis. Vol. 7, pp. 207-14. King, G. & Williams, D.R. (1995). “Race and Health: A Multi-Dimensional Approach to African American Health.” Society and Health: Foundation for a Nation. Levine, S.; Walsh, D.C.; Amick, B.C.; & Tarlov, A.R. (Eds.). Cambridge, MA: Oxford University Press. Krieger N. (2000). “Discrimination and Health.” Social Epidemiology. Berkman L. & Kawachi I. (Eds.). Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 36-75. Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. Chapter 34. (2000). London: Stationery Office. Retrieved 6 June, 2006 from . Raxen. (2001). “Anti-Islamic Reactions in the EU after the Terrorist Acts Against the USA.” Country report for UK. Vienna: EUMC. Retrieved 6 June, 2006 from Ray, L.; Smith, D.; & Wastell, L. (2004). “Violent Racism – A Case of Unacknowledged Shame?” British Journal of Criminology. Sibbitt, R. (1997). “The Perpetrators of Racial Harassment and Racial Violence.” Home Office Research Study 176. London: Home Office. Virdee S. (1995). Racial Violence and Harassment. London: Policy Studies Institute. Read More