Runmed March 2001 Bulletin

No. 326 JUNE Bulletin 2001 RUNNYMEDE’S QUARTERLY Reporting on a Report Since publication of the report on The Future of Multi-Ethnic Britain in October 2000, Bhikhu Parekh has written and spoken about its content in many fora.1 He has addressed both in print and in person how the report was widely and serially misrepresented by the media at the point of publication, and how the reverberations of that initial coverage persist. Here we publish the text of Professor Parekh’s recent keynote presentation to the annual conference of the Political Studies Association of the UK, held in Manchester on 11 April 2001. Bhikhu Parekh When the report on The Future its major recommendations, it microcosm of British society and is Chair of the of Multi-Ethnic Britain was would be useful to explore what covered all points of view except Commission on published last October, it created the report really said, how and rabid racists at one end and the Future of Multi-Ethnic a bit of a stir, which took many of why it was read in a particular peddlers of revolutionary utopias Britain us by surprise, including those manner in certain circles, and at the other.The published report Photo: Stefano with some experience of public what the whole episode tells us was unanimous – the unanimity Cagnoni life.The report was much about the inescapable tensions being consensual and not a misunderstood, grossly between a rigorous academic product of arm-twisting or subtle misrepresented, and often inquiry and the partisan rhetoric moral blackmail that can easily deliberately distorted. Even the of the political market-place. shadow such a multi-ethnic Notes Home Office, which had warmly commission. 1 The views I welcomed the report after a Background Our immediate concern was express in this careful reading of its final draft, to the Commission narrow and practical, namely how article are gave in to the pressure of the For those who aren’t familiar with to deal with the discrimination wholly mine and rightwing media and sought to its background, the Commission and disadvantages to which ethnic do not in any distance itself from parts of it.The on the Future of Multi-Ethnic minorities are subject in our way reflect Home Secretary criticised the Britain was made up of 25 society. Britain has fairly powerful those of my Left for its alleged lack of individuals, including seven well- laws to deal with discrimination fellow patriotism, implying that all of us known academics, three and there is no shortage of commissioners. I on the Commission belonged to distinguished journalists, two senior decent men and women either. would not be the Left and that any attempt to police officers, representatives of And it has pursued policies surprised if question the narrow rightwing different communities, one senior designed to tackle racial some of them view of patriotism implied a lack and recently retired civil servant, disadvantage.Yet the problem took quite a of loyalty and affection for Britain. and several distinguished public persists. Racial violence is high, different view of Now that the controversy has figures including the President of racial discrimination and what we were died down and the report is the Liberal Democratic Party, and disadvantage blight many lives, doing in the being read and appreciated for its two retired chairs of the ethnic minorities are conspicuous report and why intellectual and moral seriousness, Commission for Racial Equality. It by their absence from positions of it generated so much so that the ministers had eight women members and power, and our way of talking strong reactions involved are willing to discuss ten members from the ethnic about them rarely manages to in rightwing how best to implement some of minorities.The Commission was a steer clear of either thinly circles. ISSN: 0965-7762 RUNNYMEDE’S QUARTERLY BULLETIN JUNE 2001 1 disguised racism or patronising The Report’s Central Theses of Asians and Afro-Caribbeans. condescension. Rather than summarise the In the report we therefore The Commission therefore felt report’s detailed findings, I would defined the term ‘ethnic group’ in that it needed to think afresh like to highlight its three central non-racial terms, and take it to about the problem and explore theses. refer to a group of people who new ways of looking at it. share common historical MULTI-ETHNIC Although legislation and public 1 Reconceptualising ethnicity experiences, a cluster of cultural BRITAIN policies were crucial, they had First, the way in which the term beliefs and practices, a broad their limits and could not by ‘ethnic minority’ has long been collective consciousness of themselves change people’s used in British political discourse belonging together, and see deepest attitudes. Furthermore, is problematic.The term is themselves and are seen by There are, since laws and polices derived generally used to refer to Asians others as more or less distinct. indeed, points at their legitimacy and popular and Afro-Caribbeans, and is a In this sense of the term we all which the support from a particular way of substitute for the earlier term belong to an ethnic group, recommendations looking at British society and the ‘coloured people’. In other words irrespective of whether we are put forward in place of ethnic minorities within ethnicity is racialised, which is why English, Scots, Irish, Afro- the Report it, new ones could not be arrived the terms ‘ethnic’ and ‘racial’ are Caribbeans or Indians. Insofar as would appear to at without radically reconsidering used interchangeably as in the Britain consists of different ethnic conflict with the latter.The Commission Race Relations Act 1976 and the groups, it is a multi-ethnic society. liberal therefore was led to ask large Commission for Racial Equality. It would be so even if it had no individualist questions about the nature of Racialisation of ethnicity has Asians and Afro-Caribbeans. principles; British society, the best way to several disadvantages. It Each of these groups is capable however, to the read its history, how to deepen its conceptually and politically of harbouring hostility and extent that they collective self-understanding so as ghettoises blacks and Asians, discriminating against other do, it is not at all to make it hospitable to the implies that white people are free groups. Racism is not the apparent how presence of ethnic minorities, the from ethnicity, and concentrates monopoly of whites, for Asians they could be appropriate language to describe only on colour-based racism. It and blacks can also be guilty of it supported in the contemporary state of race also makes it difficult to in their relations with each other any other relations, the nature of racism, conceptualise and cope with the and with white people. Reports reasonable way. how to balance the demands of discrimination that the English of the recent events in Bradford, (Barry 2001: 52) social cohesion with those of might experience in Scotland and Oldham and even Leeds seem to cultural differences, the limits of Wales, and vice versa. And it bear this out.While we may permissible diversity, and so on. prevents us from focusing on legitimately focus on white racism And it used answers to these and such discrimination and because of the numerical related questions to generate disadvantage as the Irish and the superiority and greater political proposals for appropriate policies Jews might experience and and economic power of white and legislation. relating their problems to those people in our society, we must The Commission on the Future of Multi-Ethnic Britain pictured together (in 1999) at the point of bringing to a close their work on compliling the Report’s text (Bhikhu Parekh is front centre). Photo: Format photographers 2 RUNNYMEDE’S QUARTERLY BULLETIN JUNE 2001 remain alert to and struggle whose range and depth have most of them retain at least some against other forms of racism as been increased by the recent ties with it. And they all live within well. devolution of power.This is also rural or urban areas and That is why the report defines true, albeit to a lesser extent, of inescapably share ties of common racism widely to refer to all Northern Ireland and Wales.With interest with those around them. attempts to homogenise, the development of regional They are not, however, stereotype and take demeaning consciousness in England, it too is imprisoned within or defined by MULTI-ETHNIC views of other groups and in so becoming a home of different these communities, and remain BRITAIN doing racialise or attribute race- regional communities, and it is not free to leave and criticise them. like properties to them. Racism at all unlikely that they might over Communities do not exist creates races by turning open, time throw up their own distinct independently of individuals; nor, There is, of overlapping, loosely structured educational and administrative equally, do individuals exist course, truth in and internally differentiated systems. independently of communities. the realization groups into closed and rigid Britain also has different Britain is therefore best that the culture in which one is natural or quasi-natural types, and religious and ethnic communities, described as a community of born and bred hierarchically grading them on the some of them no doubt more individuals and of communities, a can leave a basis of what are mistakenly internally united than others. community of individuals in their lasting impact believed to be neutral and These national, regional, ethnic individuality as well as their on one’s universal criteria. and other communities are all membership of overlapping perceptions and predispositions. The concept of ethnic group is part of a larger political communities.To call it a But this does itself not free from difficulties.

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