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Amir Saeed
© Amir Saeed2007
Modern racism has been used to scapegoat incoming black and Asian migrants pulled into the Western economies, and to divide them from white workers. Today we can see the development of other variants of racism stemming from this era of globalisation and imperialism …The destruction of whole societies by neoliberal economics and the policies of the IMF and the World Bank has uprooted many people in the poorer countries.
(Mahamdallie, 2003 45-4)
This article argues that to understand modern racism in the UK one has
to make connections between popular racism and wider socio-economic
influences. Thus to understand PM Gordon Brown’s recent neo fascistic
statement “British jobs for British workers” one needs to
examine the broader politics of globalisation in the modern world. The
racisms espoused under this current neo-liberal climate echo the biological
racism of the era of Empire, combined with a cultural xenophobic racism
that argues for the preservation of “Fortress Europe”, or
for Britishness, and questions multiculturalism.
Attempts to control unwanted non-white immigration into the UK and the
West could be traced back to the 16th Century. In an era of globalisation,
mass migration has taken on a new significance. Moral panics about asylum
seekers and refugees have been further heightened since the 9/11 attacks.
The rhetoric used to exclude ‘unwanted migrants’ takes on
an explicitly racist tone; however this politics of exclusion is in
many ways fuelled by economic underpinnings. It is this connection between
globalisation and racism underpinned by a history of imperialism that
now frames our discourse.
The forces of globalisation occupy and re-invent cultures and discourses
of racial superiority in order to safeguard the economic interest of
power. Thus economic groups such as the IMF, WTO, G8 etc are seen as
almost preserving white cultural domination through economic subjugation.
This ideology at times is clear and brutal but is maintained through
hegemonic control. Thus the privileged position of the Western nations
is seen as natural and due to greater political pluralism and democracy
not the continued exploitation of other parts of the world or other
peoples. Thus the invasion of Iraq mirrors this process. Bush/Blair/Brown
are bringing ‘democracy’ to Iraq in much the same manner
that missionaries brought civilisation to the ‘dark’ parts
of the world in the age of empire. ‘Race’ thinking here
is intrinsic but not overt.
‘Race’ as a concept does not exist, yet belief in this lie
leads to the direct and indirect discrimination, abuse and suffering
of billions of people on Earth on a daily, hourly and secondly basis.
Across the globe racism manifests itself in various ways that ensures
people are victimised on the basis of some supposedly hallucinatory
negative biological and/or cultural trait that they are supposed to
possess. Any attempt to explain comprehensively global accounts of the
immediacy, currency and future of racism is virtually impossible, since
the institutional structures, types, targets and experiences are so
potentially vast and full of regional, local and national variations
that dispute and debate will be inevitable.
What cannot be disputed is that human beings will suffer. In short the
racism faced by an asylum seeker on the streets in the North East of
England by a fascist group will be visibly different from the persecution
faced by a Palestinian woman by the occupying Israeli army in the Gaza
strip. Both situations may have the essential requirements that allow
racism and prejudice to manifest but both are also dependent on varying
socio-cultural circumstances.
Contemporary racism manifests itself in a number of different hybrid
forms. Its agency is premised on a number of false assumptions about
‘race’, and on generalising human beings’ existence
and experiences into simple homogenous groupings. Even now racism can
still resemble the biological arguments employed to justify slavery
and imperialism.
All Muslims, like all dogs, share certain characteristics. A dog is
not the same animal as a cat just because both species are comprised
of different breeds. An extreme Christian believes that the Garden of
Eden really existed; an extreme Muslim flies planes into buildings -
there's a big difference.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2004/07/25/do2504.xml
Simultaneously cultural racism is evident with politicians questioning the success of a multicultural society. The moral panic surrounding the events of 9/11, and 7/7 have led to a right-wing led debate under the guise of community cohesion that have suggested a return to “core national values/culture” (note that the debates suggest the lack of precise meanings for these terms; national and culture) alongside stricter immigration and policing controls. Recently a new dominant neo-right wing discourse has been formulated that questions the whole concepts of multiculturalism. What makes this different from previous right wing criticism of multiculturalism is that much of this criticism is coming from previously centre left commentators. Much of this language has taken even the more sinister view of questioning the need of immigration, questioning minority communities and questioning the actual benefits of a multicultural society.
These reactionary and conservative arguments fail to adequately examine
social, political and even cultural reasons for contemporary events.
Thus deep ideological and institutional factors such as, British/Western
foreign policy, poverty, ‘white flight’ or anti-Muslim racism
are marginalised or glossed over.
The irony here is twofold: mainstream politicians appear to operate
in a system that assumes racism is the perverse psychological thinking
of the far right. Thus they are willing to support anti-racist initiatives
that do not challenge the economic status quo. Witness David Cameron
courting the British Pakistani Muslim boxer Amir Khan or Gordon Brown
applauding the Football Unites/Racism Divides initiative. Simultaneously
politicians make statements about the need for Muslims to integrate,
the need for harsher immigration controls and greater policing powers.
These are all measures that are debated in a highly racialised climate
yet the racist assumptions/assertions forwarded are discounted or ignored.
The further irony here is that global capital needs migrants and cheap
labour to slave in the sweatshops of Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Capitalism needs the cheap supply of even white Eastern European migrants
who at times suffer racism in much the same way white Irish migrants
did in previous times (the further sad irony here is the growth of anti-Eastern
racism alongside anti Black/Asian racism in Ireland).
One last personal point may help illustrate my argument that to examine
contemporary racism in its many forms needs an examination of broader
socio-economic developments. I was born in Pakistan, my family migrated
to the UK as economic migrants (read as trying to get a better life!)
when I was two; I have been educated here and employed in UK since leaving
education. Yet I am still questioned about my “right to belong”
due to my skin colour (that implies not British) and my religion (that
implies not Western).
Thus capitalism that drove my family to seek a better life also fuelled
the prejudice that still questions my existence. This in return begs
the question - would I qualify for a ‘British job’ under
Brown’s proposals? - for many it appears I am still an immigrant.
Ref: Hasan Mahamdallie (2003) “Racism” in Anti-Imperialism:
A guide for the Movement. Bookmark Publications London
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