Meeting basic needs
- Redistribute a substantial amount of land to landless people
- Build over one million houses provide clean water and sanitation for all
- Bring electricity to 2.5 million homes
- Provide affordable healthcare and telecommunications
Developing human resources
- Provide education and training for all, especially for young people.
- Ensure an equal role for women
- Restructure industry to re-enter the world economy
- Develop an arts and culture programme that recognizes cultural diversity
- Provide sports and recreational facilities for all
Building the economy
- Establish trade union and workers rights
- Co-operate with other neighbouring African countries give equal access to jobs and training to all
Democratising the state and society
- Develop local government
- Reform police and security forces
- Establish a bill of rights
Racism across the world-some fact
EMPLOYMENT
Racism affects people’s chances of getting a job
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USA Black people are twice as likely to be unemployed as whites.
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BRITAIN Ethnic minorities are twice as likely on average to be unemployed as whites. For some groups, unemployment is four times as great
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AUSTRALIA Aboriginal people are more than three times as likely to be unemployed than the general population
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CANADA Indigenous Canadians are twice as likely to be unemployed as the rest of the population
RACIST VIOLENCE
Racist violence is increasing in many parts of the world.
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BRITAIN 90 per cent of racially motivated attacks are carried out by whites against ethnic minorities. It is estimated that in 1993, there were 130,000 racist incidents
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USA In 1993, seven out of ten ‘ hate’ crimes were racially motivated-36 per cent against blacks and 13 per cent against Jews.
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GERMANY In 1993, at least fifty - two people died as a result of racist activities
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ITALY In the first nine months of 1993, a hundred racial attacks were estimated to have taken place in Rome
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Racism increases the chances of people belonging to oppressed groups being imprisoned.
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USA Black people make up 12 per cent of the total population but 48 per cent of the prison population
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AUSTRALIA The percentage of Aboriginal people in prison is fourteen times the national average
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BRITAIN Ethnic minorities from 5.5 per cent of the total population but 18.6 per cent of the prison population
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NEW ZEALAND Maoris make up 9 per cent of the total population but 50 per cent of the prison population
Fact
School can be tough for minority seventy- nine per cent of black Caribbean boys and 70 per cent of Asian boys and girls said they’d been picked on at school.
More than 140,000 black people are attacked in Britain every year. Most of these attacks go unreported to the police. Beatings, murders, fire bombs, and excrement pushed through letter- boxes are just some of the grim realities that black people in Britain face today.
Racist attacks and harassment
More than one government and police report has proved that ethnic minorities suffer more from attacks purely motivated by racism than other groups. Some of these are very serious, with people being killed or badly injured. One of the best known cases in recent years has been Stephen Lawrence, a black teenager from Greenwich in London, waiting at a bus stop. He was beaten to death by a group of five young white men who had never seen him before. No-one was brought to justice for this murder, and it has made black people in the area feel less safe and reduced their faith in the police to protect them.
Sometimes it's people's houses that are attacked, or their places of worship.
The British Crime Survey in 1997 estimated that about 130,000 racially motivated crimes were committed against black and Asian people, with no particular group 'getting it' worse than another. Half of those who reported harassment to the police felt dissatisfied with what happened next.
More young people get harassed than older ones. People who live in areas where there are few other minorities are more likely to report being harassed than people who live in more mixed areas. The main ethnic minority groups all reported a similar amount of harassment.
A national survey in 1997 worked out that about 250,000 black and Asian people are harassed every year, by workmates, neighbours, but most often by strangers. Usually the people doing the harassing are male. A Health Service report in 1997 showed that black nurses were leaving in large numbers and this was 'linked to harassment in the workplace'.
Racial problems were reported 236 times in Edinburgh schools in 1996. Most of them were about boys around the age of nine saying or writing racist names, and taking the mickey out of ethnic minority pupils.
In 1998 the Government introduced higher penalties for harassment and assault with a racial motive.
Religious Discrimination and Harassment
The law about this is a bit complicated, but basically there is no law protecting people from being treated badly because of their religion. The complicated bit is that, in practice, some people are protected:
- Jews are classified as a 'racial group' under the Race Relations Act because they have what's called a 'common heritage'. This means that almost all Jews are the children of Jews (it is possible to convert, but it is rare) and that people born as Jews tend to still call themselves Jews, even if they are not at all religious. Jews have also experienced such persecution that it would have been impossible not to have included them in the law. The persecution, especially under the Nazis, was not because of their religious beliefs.
- Sikhs are also classified as a 'racial group' under the Race Relations Act because they have common roots: a language and culture as well as religion in the Punjab area of north west India. They are not physically any different from Muslims and Hindus from the same area.
- In Northern Ireland everyone is protected against discrimination at work on the grounds of their religion. Because of the history of conflict between two branches of Christianity - Protestants and Catholics - the Fair Employment Act was passed. This protects people whatever their religion, so Muslims are covered too.
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Christians are protected against their religion being publicly insulted by the blasphemy laws. These were passed many years ago when almost the whole population would have said they were Christian, and when the Christian religion was much more a part of everyday life. No-one has been punished for this crime for a long time, but it seems odd that it's a crime to insult the god that Christians believe in but not a crime to insult the god that Sikhs believe in.
- If some rule unfairly discriminates against a particular religion, then it may be that its followers are protected by the Race Relations Act if they all belong to one ethnic group. This is called indirect discrimination. (Example: strictly speaking it would be legal for a shop in Leicester to advertise for staff saying 'only Christians need apply', but since there are many Asian Hindus in Leicester, and not many Christians, they could say that indirectly the advert discriminates against them.
Muslims are the largest religious group in Britain not protected by the law. They cannot be classed as a racial or ethnic group because Muslims do not have a long, shared history; they do not have a particular place they all come from, and they do not share a common language or a common culture. Many feel quite strongly that the law ought to protect them as Muslims, not solely as people who happen to have dark skin. Mosques have been attacked, people get threats over the phone, abuse gets shouted at children, not because they are Asian but because they are Muslims.
This may be changed because of the development. It may be that before long every European country has to have a law protecting people against discrimination on the grounds of their religion. This has to happen before 2006, and in Britain it may happen by 2003.
Education ought to be the one area of life in which everyone is treated equally and has an equal chance, regardless of their race, religion, sex or the colour of their skin. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
Many teachers still think that if pupils cannot speak English ‘ properly’, they are unintelligent. Many Asian children speak another language at home and therefore have to learn English as a second language. Some West Indian children speak in a dialect in which teachers say is ‘incorrect’ or ‘wrong’. These are extra barriers which black people have to cross in order to succeed.
West Indian children fare worse in examinations than white and Asian children. Research has suggested that this may be partly caused by teachers who believe that children of different racial groups have different abilities. They do not expect West Indian children to do well. In 1983, there were about 800 black teachers in Britain out of a total number of over 450,000. Obviously we need more if all children are to be given a fair chance.
The reasons people gave for prejudice were, in order of importance
- The idea that minorities were taking jobs
- Various things to do with cultural differences
- Believing that minorities were getting good housing and on the dole
People are not born racist; their views develop as they grow up.
Some young people are racist because their friends or family are racist. They may believe it’s normal and acceptable to racist. Racists may see other cultures as a threat to their own. Many claim to be acting for the good of their country, to keep their own race “ pure”- separate and distinct from others, even those who born in the same country should distinct as well.
Some racism is caused by a desire to gain or maintain advantage over others. If one section of a community has an advantage over another section, members of the advantaged group may wish to hold on to their privilege or power. They may not want the situation to become more equal.
It is against the law to give (or not give) someone a job because their colour or ‘race’, whether they are black or white. This is true with houses and flats too, and other things like letting them join clubs or schools. It’s not against the law to refuse someone a job on the grounds of their religion( except in Northern Ireland).
UK IMMIGRATION LAW
In some ways the law is very strict about who can come and live in the U.K. People from most countries in the world-like Brazil, or Russia-have to get a visa just to get past the airport, even if they are only coming as a tourist.
If you want to work in the U.K. It’s much harder to get in. You can only work here if you’re doing a specialist job that a British person can’t do. This applies to people like footballers too- a Brazilian player can’t be given a contract unless the government agrees.
On the other hand, anyone from most European countries can come here without a visa, and we can go to their countries, because we’re all in the European Union. We can all move about either as tourists or to work. If million of British people wanted to go to Germany or France to work then they could just go (though there might not be any jobs). All French or German people could as welcome to the U.K.
This did not last very long. In 1962 the commonwealth immigration act was passed to make immigration harder. This might be because Britain did not need so many workers, and it might have been because some white people didn’t like the fact that many of the new immigrant workers had dark skins. Britain was used to ruling people with different cultures in the colonies, but having them living nearby was new.
More restrictions came in with the immigration act 1971 and several times since then. Today, people from old colonies, Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, and people from the Caribbean and Africa, find it very hard to get into Britain. Many other nationalities find it easier. If you are from India and you have a relation living here, or if you marry someone here, then it is possible to get in. If you have no connection with anyone here it is almost impossible to get the right to settle here and very difficult even to get a visitor’s visa (because they think you might just stay).
This study focuses on racism and try to answer the questions such as what is racism, why some people against Racism while some are racist, should people racist or not? How racism happened in the history. My view is that people who come from different culture, religion, and country should have equal rights and equal opportunities to live their lives fully. People should not be in fear of threats from those who are prejudiced and they must never be in the position of being discriminated due to they come from different countries or their skin are different colour. We shouldn’t discriminate against the foreigners and at the time we all have the right to be treated like equal human beings. Racism must be destroyed because it is an evil thing and can be very hurtful to people.
Minority Ethnic Groups: Number
In 2001, a national survey called the Census was carried out of the whole population in Britain.
There have been smaller surveys of parts of the country since then, and they show a similar picture. About 5% of the British population are from non-white ethnic groups. The detailed figures are:
These figures show something about people's roots, not their nationality or where they were born. At least half of groups 1-9 are British-born, and you can't assume all the whites are, though most will be.
People were not asked their religion in this Census, but other researchers have worked out (roughly speaking) the following chart:
Another way of showing figures about religion is this:
Religion will not tell you much about someone's nationality. Most Jews in Britain are British-born, and the same is true for most Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims of school age.
Timeline of Ethnic Minorities in Britain
Religious view
“ Always treat others as you would like them to treat you”
Matthew 7:12-the Golden Rule
This sentence mean that what would you like other people treating you then you treat other people like it too.
I agree with this view because if you treat people horrible, why you aspect other people treat you nice. It should not matter what colour of skin you have or nationality, you should have the same treatment as others.
Non-religious view
“ Racism is morally wrong and politically dangerous. It concerns us all. For if we divide our people by sex, by race or by nation. We all lose.”
Source: Declaration on Racial violence and Xenophobia agreed by European socialist leaders, June 1993
This view mean that Racism is wrong and it is dangerous too. It’s wrong to divide people to race, sex and nation. But, if we do then, we all lose.
I agree with this view because it’s wrong to discriminate against foreigners we should all equal. Whatever your ethnic origin or race we should have the same rights and same treatment.
People against Racism
People who are against racism think that it does not matter where you from, what colour of skin you have, what nationality or ethnic origin. You should have the same treatment and same rights. People shouldn’t discriminate against foreigners.
People for Racism
The racist think that people who have different colour and race are from different country, should all sent back. The Racist believed they could treat black people less than human being and force them to do all dirty work. The racist think that they are more clever than black people.
What the racists say?
The Racists say
“ Black and Asian come to our country and steal our jobs”
My view is that it maybe true that the people come different country will have a jobs competition with British. But it’s not mean that you can racism them because it is wrong to discriminate people and this is not the excuse for it.
The Racist say
“Foreigners are responsible for all the crime”
My view is that this is not true because the majority of crime in Britain are from White people so this is not the excuse to discriminate people.