Race

Islington is a vibrant, diverse borough, with 24.7% of its residents defining themselves as having a black and minority ethnic background (2001 Census). 115 languages are spoken by Islington's school children (2002 Language survey).

The most significant BME groups are Black African, Black Caribbean and Bangladeshi in that order. Islington also has the eighth highest proportion of residents in the "other white" Census category. Many of the people in this category are Turkish, Kurdish and Turkish and Greek Cypriots.

Man, women and children from the above groups often experience discrimination, which is behaviour that shows prejudice and/or a failure to treat people equally because of a bias based on characteristic such as race, religion, sex, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, and disability. 

Discrimination can take different forms:

Direct Racial Discrimination: Treating someone lass favourably on racial grounds, such as race, colour, nationality (including citizenship) ethnic or national origin. Direct discrimination is unlawful under the Race Relations Act 1976.

Indirect Racial Discrimination: The application of a provision, criterion or practice that puts people of a particular race or ethnic or national origin at a particular disadvantage and cannot be shown to be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

Institutional Racism: " The collective failure of an organisation to provide appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin. It can be detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping which disadvantages minority ethnic people." (Stephen Lawrence Inquiry definition.)

Racial discrimination can be perpetrated by anyone belonging to any race against members of any other race. Black and minority ethnic communities disproportionately experience racial discrimination. The effects can include unemployment, poverty, low education attainment, low esteem and confidence, mental illness, social exclusion and alienation. Racially motivated hate-crimes vary in degree from verbal abuse to physical attacks, and even murder. Tragic examples of this include the murders of Stephen Lawrence, Damilola Taylor and, more recently, Anthony Walker.

Some Facts

• Ethnic minority families are still overwhelmingly concentrated in inner city areas where schools are under-funded and the chance of success perceived to be low.

• African-Caribbean boys are more likely to be excluded from school than other pupils.

• Minority ethnic people are over-represented in prison, mental and general health care services. They are twice as likely as whites to be unemployed and half as likely to own their own home.

• Pakistani and Bangladeshi people are three times more likely to live in overcrowded accommodation. This can be a significant cause of health-related problems. The level of overcrowding in Islington ranks tenth highest in the country.

• 9.1% of Pakistani, 10.2% of Bangladeshi and 10.4% of black males are out of work, compared with 4.5% white males (1991 Census).

The Law:

• Race Relations Act 1976.

• Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

For further information on legislation, please click on the link to The Law under related information.

For current information on race issues,go to the Commission for Racial Equality website listed under useful websites.