If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The Blog
Award winning actor and writer Cyril Nri and I are cogitating thus because an actor we know, one decorated by Her Majesty for services to British acting and star of a hit US series, has had his remarks, regarding slim-pickings for black actors, turned into this broadsheet headline, "David Harewood: as a black actor there are very few roles for me in Britain".
The sex slave trade in this country is sadly alive and well and is not primarily Asian driven. Any abhorrent link some may seek to make between race and inherent sexually predatory behaviour is not born out by the facts.
Welcoming Tommy Robinson into the political process also means that his Islamophobic rhetoric can be challenged head-on. On the streets, Tommy Robinson is heard and applauded. In political chambers, he will be undone.
The notion of IQ has, in recent times, seamlessly infiltrated our language becoming a synonym for intelligence more generally. However, it is worth considering that the history of IQ testing is pervaded by a darker and more sinister aspect altogether.
The rest of Europe could learn a lot from Norway's response. The United States which is trying terrorism suspects using unfair "military commissions" could also learn from Norway. Despite his desire, like many terrorists, to be treated as a warrior, Breivik is rightly being prosecuted as an ordinary criminal.
The majority of us ignore the potential problems of living in a diverse society in everyday life but hold the police to a much higher standard. Perhaps this is necessary, but it will not solve the fundamental problem.
The stakes are high regarding the forthcoming elections for London Mayor on 3 May. London's black communities and other ethnic minority Londoners make up considerably more than a third. London sets the pace and agenda for the way the whole country responds to our needs and concerns. Our communities feel they are being failed. The Met is being rocked by at least 13 officers being referred to the IPCC for racism. This follows on the heels of the reports that black men were 29 times more likely to be stopped under Section 60 powers than their white counterparts.
There's one image dominating US news coverage right now: Trayvon Martin in his hoodie. The shooting of the unarmed black teenager in Florida has triggered coast to coast protests and calls to end racial profiling.
Over the last few decades, the steady immigration of Muslims from around the world to America and across Europe, has thrown the spotlight on the hijab. Many Americans and Europeans are surprised to find that contrary to what they believe, a large number of Muslim women do not wear the hijab out of compulsion but out of choice.
Allegations of racism have raised their ugly head again in the Met Police, according to media reports I read over the weekend. The new commissioner has, quite right too, publicly stated that there is no place for such behaviour in his Force.
On Easter Sunday, as we celebrate new beginnings, Britain appears gripped by attitudes of a bygone era. It has only been three months since the Stephen Lawrence trial finally ended, bringing to a close nearly two decades of pain for his family, and along the way uncovering a culture of inherent racism within the British Police Force. After the guilty verdicts were handed down to Stephen's killers, Gary Dobson and David Norris, the courts, media and to an extent, the British public were all guilty of patting themselves on the back, and believing a great step had been taken forward for race relations within the UK.
The relationship between young people and the police in London has once again been in the spotlight this weekend.
The sickening racism that appears to have been directed at a young black man arrested by police in London, recorded on his mobile phone and published by the Guardian days ago should have rocked the British media.
Nicolas Sarkozy's decision on Monday to ban hate-preacher Yusuf al-Qaradawi from entering France was a sensible move. After the killing of Jewish children by Toulouse massacrist Mohammed Merah, a man so driven by anti-Semitism, it would have been unthinkable to welcome Qaradawi.
Oh how I can hear the rapturous applause of Nick Griffin and his fascist party at the sight of Nirpal Dhaliwal's unfounded allegative article against the black community. I think it's a shame when a journalist uses the power in his fingertips to generalise and demonise a whole section of society.
Liam Stacey showed extremely poor judgement when he tweeted offensive and thoughtless statements shortly after footballer Fabrice Muamba collapsed on the field, and the situation quickly escalated when Stacey mentioned picking cotton. Is this political correctness gone mad? I don't think so. On the contrary, it's political correctness gone sane.
