From the title of this article you might already have an immediate answer of ‘No, we are not living in a post-racial society’ and maybe you might have your reasons for having this opinion or maybe you don’t really have a good reason why, but you just know that we are not. Well, on Tuesday 20th February 2018 this was the topic of discussion for the newly re-opened society once known as the ‘ACS’ or ‘Afro-Caribbean Society‘ now known as ‘TIRAH‘. The reason for this particular question is the fact that if you ask any particular question about whether race matters in today’s society you will get a variety of answers. Some believe that since the civil rights movement in America and with the lack of any substantial racial tension in the UK (or, at least in the more ethnically diverse regions) we must then be living in a post-racial society where people are judged on their character as an individual rather than by the colour of their skin. Others, on the other hand, will contest that actually we still live in a society where racial identity retains a strong influence in any aspect of people’s lives. One can not simply disregard one aspect of this argument and call them naive because it does seem as though we just might be living in a post-racial society. Maybe racism is dead. I mean people of color have more of a chance to be someone and to be successful than we ever had right? As Safia said in the meeting ‘America had a black president, although they seem to have backslid now‘ and this is a fact.
However, cultural norms do not just change as quickly as we would like them to change. The fact that the first generation of people of color in America to have full rights as citizens are still alive screams colors. Yes, it might seem as though society is progressing and opportunities are being given but does that mean racism is dead? As Jebeth said, ‘the answer is simply no because… racism has just taken a different form.’ A quick imaginary test: imagine if Parliament passes an act today that bans all British citizens from talking about the weather. How long would it take before this becomes a cultural norm? A harsh reality was that racism used to be a cultural norm and in many areas of the world, it still remains a cultural norm. As for some of us, it might be shocking to see racism and not stand up to it, in the past, it was shocking to stand up to racism because it was a cultural norm. A lot of our opinions are from the perspective of a Londoner, city kids so for us we can be more inclined to believe that we live in a post-racial society but as Melissa says if we ‘take into account the other areas of the UK’ racism is rife.
As all good conversations tend to do, the meeting soon went on a tangent on the topic as we started to consider all the different forms that racism might have taken. First, we thought colorism but is colorism really a form of racism? Racism is defined as prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior. While colorism is defined as prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group. So, the question was is racism taking form between people of the same race? Is that what we are doing now? Another form that was considered was so-called positive discrimination. Is ‘positive’ discrimination racist? We all know of all the schemes that institutions like Oxford, Cambridge, and big law firms do that target specific racial groups primarily the BME (Black and Minority, Ethnic) this is a form of positive discrimination but is it racist? Is there positive racism?
As Omoniyi says, ‘For people of color it is a fact that we still have to try twice as hard to make its institutions like this and that is because a lot of people of color are not pushed to apply for top universities or jobs and these institutions are trying to remedy this.’
Positive discrimination is not necessarily a bad thing because it is just creating an even playing field for all of us to play on. These big institutions are also being pushed by the government to have more diversity so they do a lot of outreach to get their number. Now, the argument is, does the motive matter? If as a person of color you are hired or given a place in one of these big institutions does it matter if you got it because of the color of your skin or because of your skills? A point was that before applying to one of these institutions, you do so because you personally believe in your skills and your talent, therefore, why should you care why you were offered the position? This was of thinking seems very pessimistic and is s racism that forces us to be pessimistic?
The conversation continues on here and next Tuesday, 1:30-2:10, in Room 82 where Jade and Daniella will introduce a new topic. However, if you have more to say about the topic of a Post Racial Society please send in your comments and hopefully see you next week at TIRAH.
OTHER QUESTIONS RAISED
Why does it seem that racism is more prominent in The USA?
Is Positive Racism a thing?
Does the Motive matter?
If you are interested more in the topic at:
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