Review ‘downplays institutional problems we have in Britain’
which this report fails to do, that we can challenge these deep inequalities and build a fairer future,” he told Eastern Eye.
Kalwant Bhopal, professor of education and social justice at the University of Birmingham, called the findings “dangerous and misleading.”
There is a wealth of evidence to suggest how institutional racism works in education, the academic told Eastern Eye.
“Students report regular incidents of racism and teachers and academics report they are often overlooked for promotion,” Bhopal, the author of White Privilege: The myth of a post-racial society, noted.
“Furthermore, black boys are more likely to be excluded compared to pupils from other ethnic groups – both fixed and permanent exclusions.”
Sunder Katwala, director of think-tank British Future, said although many ethnic minorities may face less prejudice than their elders did, “such comparisons make little difference to the lives of ethnic minority Britons in 2021.” (See comment, page 8).
“Britain probably does put more energy than others into collecting data on race,” he said. “That should not only be used to highlight the progress that undoubtedly has been made – it must also identify the gaps so we can take action to address them.”
Dr Halima Begum, chief executive of race equality think-tank Runnymede Trust, said denying the existence of institutional racism was “deeply, deeply worrying”.
Labour MP Preet Kaur Gill noted the disproportionate impact that the Covid-19 virus has had on ethnic minority communities. “(This issue shows) a real problem with inequalities exists,” the Birmingham Edgbaston representative told Eastern Eye last Thursday (1). “I really don’t know what the government or the commission thought they were going to achieve.”
She said it was “almost gaslighting” the issue, adding: “The idea that institutional racism doesn’t exist is a failure to acknowledge real problems.”
Gill echoed comments from mental health campaigner Poppy Jaman, who said she had seen many comments from ethnic minorities who felt “gaslighted”.
“The word disappointing is not big enough to capture the emotions I am feeling right now,” she told Eastern Eye. “Race relations in our country has a long way to go and this report and its tone of voice is the perfect example of institutions that uphold systems that discriminate.”
Justice shadow secretary David Lammy accused Johnson’s government of “slamming the door” in the faces of those fighting against institutional racism.
“He has let an entire generation of white and black British people down,” Lammy said last week. “Let’s not forget this report was rushed out in response to the overwhelming desire for change after the murder of George Floyd, where thousands of people rallied for the black men, women and children, suffering, still, excluded in this country because of institution racism.”
Labour MP Lisa Nandy also said she was
“deeply disappointed” that the review “seemed to downplay the structural problems we’ve got in this country”.
Unite, Britain and Ireland’s largest union, said the race report had “extinguished any hope”. Unite national officer for equalities, Harish Patel, called the report a “huge disappointment” and it “failed to delve deeper into the inequalities that affect those from ethnic minorities in the UK which have been further highlighted by the impact of the pandemic over the last year”.
Meanwhile, businessman Lord Rami Ranger has voiced his support for the review. Speaking to Eastern Eye last Thursday, he said there was no institutional racism “as the report suggests”.
“There are laws against discrimination of every kind,” the life peer said.
However, he added: “It is worth remembering that prejudice is everywhere, and we must ignore it. By working hard, we can rise above the rest and can demonstrate that we are an asset. No one dislikes an asset.” (With agencies)