Proposal Presentation for Studio Brief 02:
The topic that I have looked into is Racism in the UK. Racism can be defined by prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.
The Race Relations Act of 1965 was the first legislation in the United Kingdom to address racial discrimination.
It was made as the UK saw an influx of economic migrants after World War II, many from the Commonwealth countries.
Casual ‘colour prejudice’ was part of daily life for many back then.
This led to a series of riots in Notting Hill in 1958. White working-class ”Teddy Boys" were beginning to display hostility towards black families in the area, a situation exploited and inflamed by groups such as Oswald’s Mosley’s Union Movement and other far-right groups such as the White Defence League, who urged disaffected white residents to "Keep Britain White".
In 1963 the Bristol Bus Boycott occurred, it arose from the refusal of the Bristol Omnibus Company to employ black or Asian bus crews in the city of Bristol. Unfortunately The Race Relations Act was "a weak piece of legislation" and failed to end racial discrimination in the UK fully.
These are just some of the different types of racism.
Internalised refers to the feelings feelings of self-hatred experienced by individuals from oppressed groups.
And Subtle refers to the seemingly minor ways minorities experience discrimination. Everyday slights such as being ignored, ridiculed or treated differently because of one’s racial background.
When racist or religious hate incidents become criminal offences, they are known as hate crimes. This can take the form of some of things listed.
There are two main types of racist and religious hate crime:
1. racially or religiously aggravated offences under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998
2. any other offences for which the sentence can be increased under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 if they are classed as a hate crime
There has been an increasing number of attacks on foreigners in the aftermath of the vote to leave the European Union last year.
Leave campaigners used xenophobia and bigotry to drive forward their message to the public. Nigel Farage said allowing Syrian refugees into the UK would put British women at risk of sexual assault.
Brexit has given people an excuse to have racist views towards immigrants, and they feel now they can express their views publicly.
Reported hate crime rose by 57% in the four days after the referendum, police say. Although it's normal for reports of racist and bigoted behaviour to soar after major news events it is still a problem. Racism creates a society where people don't trust and respect each other.
With the support of the Institute of Race Relations, the websites Post-Ref Racism, Worrying Signs and iStreetWatch compiled a study based on 636 individual reports of incidents of racist and xenophobic hate crime. The reports had been gathered on social media after people were encouraged to share accounts of incidents they had experienced or witnessed. Campaigns like this made people more likely to report hate crimes to the police, but there is still a deep rooted issue within society.
In response to the shocking rise in hate crimes since the Brexit vote, some have been spreading their own messages to people who have been made to feel threatened or unwelcome in Britain.
Thousands of protesters have also gathered in London last week for an anti-racism march in a show of "unity" against Brexit and Donald Trump.
I’ve got a quote from Nelson Mandela that I think is really relevant as to why I want to tackle this issue…
