Racism: A Clear and Present Danger

by Lola Okolosie

When I first heard the news that Gary Dobson and David Norris had been convicted for the murder of Stephen Lawrence, I simply felt heavy with sadness. Not joy or even relief, but an overwhelming sense of gloom that it had taken so long, longer than Stephen had lived as the papers continue to remind us, to get this little bit of justice; three or four of the killers are still out there living their lives freely. If I am honest, I had no hope that the British justice system would pull through for the Lawrence family. Or indeed faith that the police at that time were capable of following procedures well enough to not have contaminated the evidence. Damning, I know, but what else am I supposed to think as a black person? After all, this was the same police force that dismissed 27 eye witnesses identifying the five as Stephen’s attackers. The police preferred, rather, to work under their own racist vision of the truth- a black teenager has been stabbed to death, therefore a gang member/drug dealer he must be, ergo he is underserving of a thorough investigation. It was only the fact that Nelson Mandela discussed and highlighted the issues surrounding the case that lead the embarrassed police force to begin pursuing the correct leads.

The racist logic of the police enabled the murderers to grow into wizened men, seemingly encapsulated in their bitter racism. David Norris evidently learnt nothing; in 2002 he served a prison term for racist behaviour directed at a plain clothes police officer. I felt a sense of pride that Doreen Lawrence refused to let the celebrations proceed without reminding us of the terrible way in which the police had handled the case. The sentencing of the two cannot and should not, as I fear may be the case, be used as some sort of bench mark of how far we have come as a nation when it comes to race. Those 18 years aren’t really that far away in terms of race relations, walk anywhere in some of our most deprived metropolitan neighbourhoods and it will become quite clear how far we are yet to go. Arguably since 9/11 and the 7/7 bombing, Britain has become a much more racially divided society. Islamophobia has become widely established as a natural and understandable reaction to the ‘war on terror’.

The police, rather than congratulating themselves for having the foresight to pursue a ‘cold case’ review, need to continue to readdress their sustained use of racial profiling. In 2010 researchers from London School of Economics and the Open Society Justice initiative examined official figures discovering that in ‘2008/2009, there were 41.6 searches for every 1,000 black people, but only 1.6 for every 1,000 white people’, making black people 26 times more likely to be stopped and searched. 26 times! We are 3 times more likely to be arrested than white people despite the fact that we are more likely to be victims of crime. If this is not proof that the police remains institutionally racist, then I don’t know what is.

I remember the sense of utter anger and frustration when the revelations of just how wrong the police got it were revealed. As a teenage black girl in the north, it only served to remind me of how I existed within a society that expected absolutely nothing of me but the worse. We may have stumbled a few paces beyond this awful point but we really do need to do much more work.

The same papers that are so self-congratulating at the moment, your Daily Mails for example, need to recognise that their constant attacks on immigrants and their woeful reporting of August’s riots, to name just a few topical issues, are only the flip side of the same coin as that of the murderous racists. Yes the Daily Mail was instrumental in getting the then Home Secretary, Jack Straw, to order the Macpherson Inquiry. The irony is unsettling. To that end, millions who subscribe to their daily dose of insidious xenophobia need to take note. The right-wing media’s coverage of the case smacks a little too much of middle England’s desire to distance itself from a thorough analysis of its own routine acts of racism. Underlying the coverage of this case is the message that these men are an isolated example, possibly prototypical of ‘chav’ behaviour in the extreme. This view allows for a convenient separation, falsely deluding many into thinking that they are not themselves connected to this heinous crime. The same disconnect that seemed to be operating for middle England during the summer, when most of the media coverage all but said ‘look at those black thugs’, is operating here. There is a pervading censoriousness that believes it is wholly separated from its object of disgust. It is not. Insidious racism and xenophobia provide the bedrock on which violent racists can and do operate.

Justice For One But Not For All

by Donalea

After a wait of 18 years the family and close friends of Stephen Lawrence can breathe a sigh of relief as two of the five original suspects were found guilty of his murder and sentenced to up to 15 years imprisonment without early release.

A major triumph for the Lawrence family who have for the last 18 years been on a dignified crusade for the justice of their sons racially motivated murder.

Though in the frenzy of all this media coverage these last 2 days on the high profile race relation case of Stephen Lawrence, it is becoming apparent that the justice received was more about repairing the tarnished reputation of institutionally racist Britain then actually working on improving race relationships in Britain.

Much of the talk now is of the job well done by the Metropolitan Police for finally securing a conviction in the murder case, many of our politicians have agreed on this and even the Met Police have publicly given themselves a pat on the back.

I don't dispute the effort it has taken the Met Police to finally make these 2 convictions, though I cannot agree that their reputation for being institutionally racist should be repealed because of this.

The last 18 years may have seen changes in British Law and police procedures as repercussions of the Lawrence's campaign for Justice though this has had little effect in improving the conditions of being black in Britain nor has it made any improvements in race relations.

The press, clearly absent minded, seems to have forgotten that only 6 months ago England was battered by 4 days of riots, caused by the suspicious killing of black Tottenham resident Mark Duggan by the police.

United the press perpetuated the image of the loots as being black, with most of the news clips showing black youths smashing through shop windows and carrying bags of looted goods. This was followed up with the racist comments made by David Starkey, that black hip-hop and criminality culture had infiltrated white working class culture. - Again this was only six months ago!

Since Lawrence's murder in April 1993 the Institute of Race Relations lists the deaths of 37 black people whom have died in police custody alone (see link below).

Scarily many of the inquests into these deaths are ruled as unknown verdicts, a notable example which made the headlines, though not nearly as high profile as the Lawrence's case is of Roger Sylvester, who died in January 1999 after being restrained by police in Tottenham.

So what exactly has the Met Police learnt since Stephen Lawrence's death? Apart from bringing 2 of Lawrence's killers to justice now due blotching up the initial investigations 18 years ago, what qualifies them for redemption? If the Met Police are no longer racist then why is it that 4 in 10 black men in the UK will have their DNA on the database? And why are black people still seven times more likely to be stopped and searched than white people?

Comforting as it is to see that justice has finally been served for the heinous murder of a innocent and promising black teen, it is very important that we do not start to confuse this triumph of justice over racism as a generalisation, this is just one out of the many cases of racism that has been fortunate enough to receive some form of justice in what is still very much a racist society.

For many black families in similar cases to the Lawrence's, they won't have connections to international politicians or humanitarian figures to raise awareness for their fight like the Lawrence's did with Nelson Mandela, nor do the conditions of their situations appeal to the Britishh media as being considered news worthy.

Race relations in this country will not improve till a continual dialogue is opened up, this dipping in and out of trend does nothing to validate the reality of a problem that affects the lives of those considered in this country as an ethnic minority.

"Learning from the journey to here, for the journeys to come"

Black Feminist Learning Event

The under-documentation of Black feminist herstory means that much learning is at risk of being lost. The aim of this event is to share learning and experiences which will strengthen Black feminist activism. So we are calling together Black feminists who were instrumental in setting up and running groups, organisations and campaigns over the past five decades to share their experiences and document Black herstory. All groups and campaigns have had their ups and downs. We would like to focus the event on:
- what were the achievements
- what were the challenges
- what would you do differently (with hindsight)
- what is the focus for Black feminist activism now

For women descended (through one or both parents) from Africa, Asia (including Pacific nations), Latin America, the original inhabitants of Australasia, North America, and the islands of the Atlantic, Caribbean and Indian Oceans. This includes trans women.

WHEN: 6.30 – 9.30pm, Wednesday 26th October 2011

WHERE: Development House, 56 - 64 Leonard St, London, EC2A 4LT

The format will be facilitated large and small group discussions - not a panel. If you would like to help shape the event, please do get in touch: blackfeministsuk@gmail.com

ACCESS DETAILS FOR DEVELOPMENT HOUSE: 3 steps and lift access at main entrance (with alternative ramped entrance directly to basement); lift or 19 steps to basement from lobby level; accessible toilets in basement area. Basement floor even throughout. Nearest Blue Badge Parking in Moorfields (850 metres). If you need further access information, please do get in touch. There will be sign language interpretation at the event.

DIRECTIONS FROM OLD STREET UNDERGROUND: Use exit 4. Go past Sainsbury’s on your left; turn left onto Leonard Street. Go down Leonard Street for two minutes, Development House is on your right immediately before the small roundabout.
SUPERVISED CHILDREN WELCOME (no crèche)
COST: FREE (Black Feminists is an unfunded group; donations are welcome on the night to cover the cost of the event.)

Street Harassment Part 1?

by Saba Mossagizi

I was born and lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada up until 8 months ago. Alberta is a province known for its conservatism, lack of respect for the environment and abundance of money from its natural resources (see: lack of respect for the environment). Edmonton, as a city, is quite small with a population of just over a million. Besides the occasional random car driving past and honking, I could walk down the street without ever being hassled by strange men. If a man did approach me on the street with an “excuse me miss” I would never give out my number, but I would always stop because they were being polite, and who am I to just ignore another human being.

Moving to London was an insane culture shock for many reasons, the main one being, just the vast difference in population (there are just a lot more people living here). Another massive reason for my uneasy transition into life in London is the way I am spoken to while walking down the street. Men make hissing sounds, look me up and down and become aggressors, sometimes they stand in packs and intimidate me into walking around them.

Being talked to by strangers is not the issue, being complimented is not the issue, however, being disrespected on almost a daily basis can weigh on a person. When a man is shouting at you as you pass, not even attempting to have a conversation then what is the point in that interaction other than to make you feel uncomfortable and lesser than him?

I find myself passing men who are being polite because I cannot walk down the street without a “hey darlin/beautiful/gorgeous/love”, which is unfortunate because I do not want to be shaped into a different kind of person because of the men who act as aggressors towards me. I should not have to feel like I have to fix up or be embarrassed because someone has taken it upon themselves to hiss at me like they are calling for their house pet. This same type of attention directed at any male in the same circumstance would undoubtedly lead to some type of altercation; but as women, we are taught that we are to be looked at and men are taught to look (a bigger can of worms that represents a larger problem and cannot be respectfully dealt with in this relatively short post).

The first time I spoke up when at a Black Feminist gathering about street harassment, I was surprised to hear that most women have become used to this type of harassment. I even heard murmurings that it was just a part of living in London. The fact that these women that I respect so highly, never thought of this type of harassment as constantly or consistently as myself, completely and totally baffled me. However, this is the sad truth, all of my female friends who are from London have dealt with street harassment since they have hit puberty. Unfortunately, they are used to street harassment.

My end goal when I walk out of my flat is to make it to my destination without feeling dread, that I might make eye contact with someone who will try and “put me in my place”. No one has the right me to feel that uncomfortable, full stop.

Kanazawa is just a racist who went as far as to get a phd in order to impress upon the world his prejudiced views.

Back in May of this year - yes, that would be The Year 2011 - an evolutionary psychologist who was and still is employed by the London School of Economics (an academic institution that is routinely ranked in the top ten of all universities in the world) published a magazine article on the attractiveness (of abject lack of) of black women. By black, he meant Afro-Caribbean as far as I can tell.

It was a hugely insulting piece and entirely irrelevant to any questions of importance today, or yesterday, or indeed for tomorrow, but there we have it. A publicly funded (mostly - ha! Gaddafi's regime has had a hand in funding the LSE, see here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12642636, so OSTENSIBLY publicly funded with tax payers money) has hired and gives an office and room to speak and air his views to a bigot who spends his time engaging in non-rigorous, non-robust 'research' (read: musings) on how come black women are just so ugly while all other women at least have something of the aesthetic to recommend themselves.

Hugely sexist, hugely racist. This much is obvious.

While I never forget (memory like an elephant, to match my looks perhaps Satoshi would say, but whatever!) I had stopped obsessing about how offended I am by the article. That was until the new smack in the face which was the LSE published note on the outcome of Satoshi's disciplinary hearing. (It is in full below. I think it is only fair to show all of it if I am to rip into it and tear it apart - only fair.)

Apparently, "Measures have also been put in place to ensure an incident of this nature does not happen again. In particular, Dr Kanazawa must refrain from publishing in all non-peer reviewed outlets for a year. Further, he will not be teaching any compulsory courses in the School for this academic year."

So, he will not be able to submit any shameful, inaccurate, racist, bigoted articles that have not been okayed by his mates (sorry, subjected to scientific scrutiny by academic peers) for one year.

This isn't long enough for me. And, if someone has the gumption to go this far out to disseminate, culture and propagate this tripe, he probably has academic type friends who'll support him, why not, the LSE supports him with a pay packet each month. Let's look at the published (and apparently scientifically sound) papers that the LSE is not ashamed to show on its site (as of 15/9/11):

Beautiful British parents have more daughters
Kanazawa, Satoshi (2011) Beautiful British parents have more daughters. Reproductive sciences, 18 (4). pp. 353-358. ISSN 1933-7191

Full of generalisations, but the crux is that beauty is more important for women than men, so 'beautiful' people have more daughters. I wonder then, how black people have any daughters at all....

In 2009 he said feminism is illogical, unnecessary and evil: "First, modern feminism is illogical because, as Pinker points out, it is based on the vanilla assumption that, but for lifelong gender socialization and pernicious patriarchy, men and women are on the whole identical. An insurmountable body of evidence by now conclusively demonstrates that the vanilla assumption is false; men and women areinherently, fundamentally, and irreconcilably different. Any political movement based on such a spectacularly incorrect assumption about human nature – that men and women are and should be identical – is doomed to failure. Further, modern feminism is unnecessary, because its entire raison d’être is the unquestioned assumption that women are and have historically always been worse off than men. The fact that men and women are fundamentally different and want different things makes it difficult to compare their welfare directly, to assess which sex is better off; for example, the fact that women make less money than men cannot by itself be evidence that women are worse off than men, any more than the fact that men own fewer pairs of shoes than women cannot be evidence that men are worse off than women."

That's right, when it comes to women it's always actually about shoes..... For more of this dribble, see Psychology Today, if you really must.

Back in 2006 the LSE backed him up on an article published in the British Journal of Health Psychology where he stated that African people living in African states have lower IQs than people in richer countries and this leads to chronic ill-health and poverty. Hog's wash, but for proof that I am not making this up, see: http://tinyurl.com/5quqj3. So, who's with me on not trusting the academic community to rein him in, either? This is the kind of stats that he has been teaching in the compulsory (yes, compulsory, as in students have NO CHOICE but to attend) lectures at the LSE.

The other punishment is for Kanazawa to forgo teaching any compulsory courses for a year. How about ANY courses EVER? How about him losing his job? Surely publishing that paper is drawing the LSE and the social scientific community into disrepute? If it has been found to be lacking academically, inaccurate in its findings and insensitive to audience, the correct action is dismissal, not to keep him from teaching racism in his stats classes for 12 short months.

This would not be too harsh because Kanazawa has not shown that he has changed from his marred course at all. Instead he says: "The blog post in question was motivated entirely by my scientific curiosity and my desire to solve an empirical puzzle."

Empirical puzzle? As though black women being ugly is a social fact. No, the only answer to that personal 'empirical puzzle' is that Kanazawa is racist, that is why he thinks black women are ugly. That's it, that is the end to the conundrum. Kanazawa is racist and so is his curiosity and I don't need to conduct a multilinear regression analysis to come up with that answer.

"In retrospect, I should have been more careful in selecting the title of the blog post and the language that I used to express my ideas."

How about a rigorous interrogation of those very same ideas? Run it by the EHRC first, then the ESRC for ethics and then take a step back, think about it for ten years, and then if you think it is still a good idea seek out other social scientists to co-author and if you have a hard time finding partners in your own School, drop it. That would be my advice to you, Satoshi.

---

Dr Satoshi Kanazawa - findings of internal review and disciplinary hearing

The internal review and formal disciplinary hearing into a controversial blog posting by Dr Satoshi Kanazawa, Reader in the Department of Management, at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) has now been completed.

It has concluded that some of the arguments used in the publication were flawed and not supported by evidence, that an error was made in publishing the blog post and that Dr Kanazawa did not give due consideration to his approach or audience. Disciplinary action has been taken and Dr Kanazawa has written a letter of apology. Measures have also been put in place to ensure an incident of this nature does not happen again. In particular, Dr Kanazawa must refrain from publishing in all non-peer reviewed outlets for a year. Further, he will not be teaching any compulsory courses in the School for this academic year.

On 15 May 2011 Dr Satoshi Kanazawa posted a blog entry on the Psychology Today website entitled “Why are black women less physically attractive than other women?”. The School received considerable criticism from LSE students, academics and members of the public about the blog article.

In response, the School appointed a committee of senior academics to investigate the blog posting and its impact. It was clear that a number of people had been greatly offended by the blog and for this Dr Kanazawa has apologised. The review and hearing also considered the quality of the research underlying the article. After examination of the blog and detailed discussion with Dr Kanazawa, the hearing concluded that some of the assertions put forward in the blog post were flawed and would have benefited from more rigorous academic scrutiny. The view was that the author ignored the basic responsibility of a scientific communicator to qualify claims made in proportion to the certainty of the evidence.

It was the opinion of the hearing that the publication of the article had brought the School into disrepute. During the internal investigation and at the disciplinary hearing Dr Kanazawa expressed regret for the offence caused by the article and the damage to the School’s reputation. The School has accepted that Dr Kanazawa has learnt from this experience and will not make the same errors in future.

Ends

Notes:

The letter of apology by Dr Satoshi Kanazawa to LSE Director Professor Judith Rees reads as follows:

Dear Professor Rees:

I am writing to express my sincere apology for the controversial post on myPsychology Today blog and the damage it has caused to the reputation of the School. I regret that the controversy surrounding its publication has offended and hurt the feelings of so many both inside and outside the School. The blog post in question was motivated entirely by my scientific curiosity and my desire to solve an empirical puzzle. It was not at all motivated by a desire to seek or cause controversy and I deeply regret the unintended consequences that its publication nevertheless had because of my error in judgment. I accept I made an error in publishing the blog post.

In retrospect, I should have been more careful in selecting the title of the blog post and the language that I used to express my ideas. In the aftermath of its publication, and from all the criticisms that I have received, I have learned that some of my arguments may have been flawed and not supported by the available evidence. In my blog post, I did not give due consideration to my approach to the interpretation of the data and my use of language.

The past three months have been most difficult for all concerned, and I would never want to relive the experience. I give you my solemn word that in the future I will give more consideration to the approach to my work and I will never again do anything to damage the reputation of the School.

Yours sincerely,

Satoshi Kanazawa

Reader

Bol (Speak)

by Chitra Nagarajan

Bol, the newest film from Shoaib Mansor, was released in Pakistan in June this year and in India, the UK and the USA on 31st August. I just returned from seeing it tonight, on the fervent recommendation of a friend who urged me to spread the word.

South Asian cinema remains dominated by films of the singing/ dancing romance/ thriller variety but there is a growing number of films of a more political nature. Bol is a welcome addition to Pakistani cinema. The director has stated, 'Having been so blessed in life, I often think of the things that I should be grateful for. The list always seems to be never ending, but invariably it ends at one thing... that I was born a MAN. Nothing in the world scares me more than the thought of being born a woman or a eunuch...'

Bol tells the story of Zainab, the eldest of eight children that survive into adulthood, born in Lahore. She is about to be executed for murder and asks to be able to tell her story to the media from the execution block before she is hanged.

She starts with 'I am not innocent. I am a killer not a criminal.' She goes on to tell the story of growing up in a patriarchal household with a controlling, tyrannical and abusive father and a mother made ill by repeated pregnancies in the quest for a son. Even prayers during an India-Pakistan cricket match cause tension. 'In my house, father's absence was celebrated as a festival,' Zainab says at one point. The film addresses issues including poverty, Shia/ Sunni dynamics, the need for women's education, intersexuality, religion, homosexuality, prostitution, the perceived 'burden' of having daughters, as well as the realities of living in a household controlled by a non-benevolent patriarch. It also celebrates women's resistance and sisterhood. 'Like a man, you raise your hand when you are speechless,' Zainab says to her father just before he is about to beat her. At another point, she exclaims, 'I wish I was God; I would make every man give birth to a child,' when trying to explain to her father why he shouldn't impregnate her mother again.

The story unfolds in ways that I am not going to mention - needless to say that at around 2 1/2 hours, quite a lot happens. Zainab ends by asking, Why is only taking life a crime and not giving it as well? Why is having illegitimate children only wrong but not having children and making their life hell? Why isn't it a crime to produce children if you can't feed them?

It's received largely rave reviews (although one TV host has said 'filmmakers should realise that the masses want entertainment and not social messages') with many calling it 'a courageous film that has the guts to expose issues plaguing the society. It raises questions, challenges the age-old customs and mirrors a reality most convincingly.'

Hunt down a cinema showing the film (there aren't many of them around in the UK I'm afraid) and go and watch it if you can.

'disgusting Nigerian/slave'...the long road to racial equality continues

by Caroline Alabi

At a London airport recently a white man threw racist rants at singer Kelis today because he thought she cut the line. Many people witnessed this open racist rant as they were queuing up and none of them flinched.

He called her a disgusting Nigerian, a slave and said she should refer to him as sir. While this was happening the clerk at the customs desk was nodding his head in agreement! Kelis wasn't alone when this was happening; she was holding her 2 year old son. Approximately 300 other passengers who were queuing also witnessed this and not one person said a word!

Why are we so behind in terms of progression with racial equality and dealing with racism in the UK? Well, Kelis answers this nicely when she says that in the UK everything is swept under a rug - I couldn't agree with this more! When Obama got elected I remember going into work and one of the first things the receptionist (white) said was it's not long before he'll get assassinated! I then proceeded to ignore her and talk openly in the office to my other colleagues about the fact that only ignorant people will be disappointed with a black president. She always used to make subtle statements that were clearly racially charged and because she would word things in a certain way it was hard to actually point out that she was being racist.

A black prime minister in the UK is not even within reach if you ask me because the stiff upper lip culture of the UK is about not being honest and open about things. Americans will openly challenge racism and talk about inequality and aren't afraid to but in the UK saying something like ‘I'm part of a black feminist group’ will just lead to people thinking you are some sort of black panther lesbian idealist but they will pretend that they don't have an issue with it! The racism in the UK so undercover, so discreet and so subtle that it's even harder to tackle!

Here is an article on the racist attack against Kelis, but it makes you wonder doesn't it? The UK isn't actually that tolerant despite the great mix of ethnicities and nationalities represented here. It makes me feel like in theory we think we are making progress because we have race discrimination employment laws in place but in reality it hasn't changed things as much as we think. Until we start openly challenging racist and don't feel apologetic/embarrassed to challenge racism then it will continue. We need to help ourselves because nobody else will.