RACISM, INTEGRATION, AND RUTH KELLY -

The Stirrer's Brummie Blog for Thursday

24-08-2006

The Communities Minister Ruth Kelly has announced the creation of a new integration commission and called for a “open and honest” debate on race relations.

Do wake up at the back there, Ruth. The rest of the country has been having that conversation for years now, and it's by no means confined to white Britons.

Those of Asian, African-Carribean and other backgrounds have been having discussing it too - not because they're racist, but because it matters.

Of course there are people out there who simply dislike anyone who isn't of the same colour/faith/heritage as them.

As Derrick Campbell discusses elsewhere on The Stirrer, maybe deep down there's a little bit of prejudice in all of us.

Most people in my experience though - especially here in the West Midlands - are comfortable with the idea that many of their neighbours, workmates and friends probably won't have the same roots as they do.

That diversity is ironically one of the things that binds us together - it gives us our identity.

Yet even those of use who are well-disposed towards immigration and the multicultural experience of a place like Birmingham aren't blind to some of the tensions it causes.

That's why the government's dishonesty about the impact of new arrivals from Eastern Europe is so galling.

It was officially predicted that 13,000 Poles would come into the UK when border controls were lifted - the official figure is at least 447,000.

There are arguments both ways about the benefits these new workers bring but here's something that can't be disputed.

Their impact will have created additional housing demands, increased the strain on our transport infrastructure and restricted work opportunities for unemployed Brits.

Even if you accept that these difficulties are outweighed by theadvantages of welcoming young, fit and well motivated migrants,the point is that no responsible government would simply look onand do nothing to soften the impact of their arrival.

Yet this lot sat on their hands and waited to see what would happen, which is why today well organised lobby groups like the Birmingham Dental Association are complaining that some of their members are now out of work.

It also helps explain why less articulate members of society who can't get jobs are turning to the racist BNP, believing that it's the only party that shares their concerns.

These issues are particularly acute in the Greater Birmingham area, where traditional manufacturing has been allowed to decline without a sniff of government intervention.

Brand names that gave pride to our area like HP and MG Rover have gone or are going, and the PM looks on and wrings his hands.

When Ruth Kelly observes that many Britons are concerned about the changes they see around them, it's not the novel sight of sarees and balti houses that trouble us.

Of far greater concern isthe disappearance of factories and foundries- work the government dismisses as "old-fashioned" but which in fact is still highly relevant to the modern world.

It's just that now its been out-sourced some where cheaper as part of the great global economy.

Against this troubled background, at least one aspect of government policy has actively encouraged greater segregation of our communities.

Faith schools have been given the green light to expand by both Blair and Kelly in her time as Education Secretary, and that's been especially welcomed by Muslims.

So at a time when we need greater integration, children are being rigidly separated from their earliest years according to what their parents believe - and oftenin line with where their parents came from.

Scrap religious schools and the calls for community cohesion might not ring so hollow; encourage them and reap the segregation that you sow.

At least now that Ruth Kelly is recognising that there are issues to discuss here we've made a start.

But after the headlines have disappeared, what trust do you have in her ability to turn talk into action?