The company I work for used to use the phrase "Applications from ethnic minorities are particularly welcome" in its job ads. I successfully argued that this was an attempt to discourage me from applying by admitting that my application would be received with less enthusiasm than one from someone they define as being in an ethnic minority. They have changed the wording from "particularly welcome" to "actively encouraged" which they can just about get away with because it doesn't so strongly imply a comparison, but it amounts to the same thing: A quota - a policy to include ethnicity in the recruitment criteria, and that, whether you call it positive discrimination, affirmitive action, or any other euphemism, is illegal. But there has never been a WASP on the CRE and there isn't a judge in the country who would have the guts to admit that anyone other than a white person was a racist. There is no White Police Association, no Society of White Lawyers, no White Teachers Conference, no Music Of White Origin Awards, etc etc etc ad nauseum, but the racist black versions exist and you're not allowed to criticise them. Discrimination on grounds of race is a crime, but you can't be convicted of a crime unless you're prosecuted, and you won't be prosecuted if you can frighten your potential accusers with the prospect of being called racist themselves for daring to criticise you, and you can get people to discrminate in your favour by accusing them of racism if they don't.
Provided you're not a white anglo-saxon male that is - they're fair game.
OK, so there are legal loopholes to allow discrimination in favour of selected groups, but there is no legal loophole to permit inciting racial hatred, and that's exactly what "positive" discrimination does - it creates resentment which leads to racial hatred on the part of those who wouldn't otherwise judge anyone on racial grounds.
The law itself merely disallows discrmination on racial grounds. The application of the law effectively defines all racists as white.
The whole thing stinks.
TMC,
I appreciate what you say and thank you, but while I am not normally shy in coming forward with an opinion, I think as far as such things go, it is better to refuse to participate on . . . I suppose you could call them philosophical grounds.
Thanks, though.
i didn't really want to get into this, cos it's puts me right into loonie left rant mode territory.
if you're gonna talk about racism, the first thing you need to ask is where does it come from, and then you need to ask who does it serve?
the answer is, it is fostered by a society run in the interests of a tiny minority. the only way that minority can maintain itself is through a policy of divide and rule. it is deliberately allowed to fester at the least, and at worst cynically fostered, and we all soak it up. ethnic minorities too. so yes you will see white against black, and black against asian, and even asian against asian. it's very useful.
the same people who promote the policy in the first place try and shift the focus of attention with "affirmative action" programs, and are quite happy to foster those resentments that those policies also create among the wider society, who do not have that level of power and control. it allows them to claim "look we're not racist. we actually employ black people!"
i'm using the police as an example. i have no particular axe to grind there, but in the wake of the Stephen Lawrence affair, we now supposedly have a "caring sharing" police force! yeah right! try living in chapeltown in leeds and telling the people there that. try telling that to ethnic minorities, and gay men and women for that matter, who join the police and find themselves ostracised. it's complete bollox.
we teach "multi-culturalism" in schools as though that somehow addresses it, but what do they teach? difference! not inclusivity. we teach a shallow view that does nothing to change attitudes, but it allows it to be said that we are trying to stamp it out.
racism is first and foremost about power! and when you have none, any little bit of power you can cling to is attractive. hence we have BNP councillors serving one of the largest ethnic populations in yorkshire.
rant over.
neil
From my understanding *positive discrimination^ is unlawful. Taking positive action, measures or using positive recruitment methods are ok........ Its a minefeild out there!!! At the end of the day its about Equality......
Reverse Racisim, Positive discrimination, Afirmitave Action is basically all the same.........in the uk, some universities have been accused of searching out minority candidates etc. so they hit the goverment targets/outcomes! Not good.....very tokenistic!
xanaisx
Reverse Racism is Trendy Lefties OTT
A load of fucking bollox. They do more harm to race relations than a racist ever could.
Totally agree with Neil.....good on ya!
It should be about everyone being treated fairly, based on equality of opportunity, no matter what status you are in life.
xanaisx
A few things.
Positive discrimination is illegal, positive action is not. Ice you were right to make them change their advert.
Some of the Black organisations have white members though or have had white people win awards at their ceremonies, others however don't.
Every police force in this country has a problem meeting the Home Office targets regarding the target mix of their workforces. This has a lot to do with the majority admitting that they were institutionally racist and now desperatly trying to overcome this.
They were also excluded from the DDA until the 1 October this year so now also have huge disability targets to meet as well. guess what - they weren't prepared.
One force has been successfully sued by a post op transsexual so they are now all panicking about this as well and the support (or lack of) that they offer to gay or bisexual people.
They are trying the only way they know how - it gets people's backs up though and often is the totally the wrong way to go about it.
I also object to the 'filth' comment.
Racism is racism is racism, it is a problem in nearly every country in this world whether it is acknowledged or not.
I'd feel a lot happier if they were truly reversing it in the sense that it would stop happening, rather than just coining a phrase than will become a buzz word to justify its continuation
Jas
XXX
