The Escalation of Racism: Ideas for Intervention

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The Escalation of Racism Ideas for
Intervention
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• Workshop Aims
• To support participants in recognising racist
  incidents
• To consider how to effectively challenge racism
  and offer guidance for avoiding the escalation of
  conflict
• To illustrate the consequences of not responding
  appropriately to racist incidents

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• Discriminatory
• or
• Not Discriminatory?

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Discrimination

• To treat one particular group of people less
  favorably than others because of a shared
  characteristic i.e. their skin colour, sexuality,
  disability, gender, religion.
• Discrimination can be direct or indirect

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In Summary

• Even if a statement is well intentioned it could
  be discriminatory
• There doesnt need to be an immediate / apparent
  target or victim
• We need to recognise that an acceptance of such
  stereotypical, generalised statements could be a
  stepping stone towards harmful, unfair treatment.
• Having an opinion about cultural or religious
  practices in itself is not racist, although if we
  are not fully informed about things they can seem
  scary or strange and all of us may carry a sense
  of cultural superiority the way we do things
  is the right way or normal so there may be
  judgements made based on this.
• Its not about the PC brigade but it is about
  having an awareness that all of our words have
  potential for harm.

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• What is a racist incident?

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The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Definition "A
racist incident is any incident which is
perceived to be racist by the victim or any other
person."
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• Some important points to consider
• This definition is used to signal the start of an
  investigation
• It is deliberately broad
• Intention is not a defining factor
• Perception is reality
• Empowering you and any other witnesses to report
  and take action, which takes away the sole burden
  of target to report
• It protects us

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Recording Racist Incidents
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• Why should we record racist incidents?
• Schools need to be able to identify any patterns
  to racist incidents.
• It allows schools to monitor the success of any
  strategies they have put in place to prevent or
  reduce racism.
• To identify training needs for teachers, pupils
  and school staff.
• It demonstrates a positive ethos where all pupils
  are valued and racism and discrimination are not
  accepted.

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• James Story

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• Lets consider
• Holistically, what can we do to support an
  individual in our care to resist and have
  resilience towards the dangers of racism or
  extremism?
• What signs might there be that a pupil may be
  more vulnerable to the influences of groups like
  the English Defence League?
• What do racist incidents look like? When should
  an incident be recorded?
• How do we effectively challenge racist incidents
  in school?
• What are the potential consequences of not
  responding or responding inappropriately?

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• What were the factors that caused James behaviour
  to escalate?
• Break down of family relationships
• Fear
• Step father losing his job
• Missing out on opportunities
• Joining the EDL
• Perceived injustice
• Inappropriate response from school to the racist
  incident

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The Ripple Effect
Wider Community
Family Friends
The Individual
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The Pyramid of Hate
Genocide
Physical Attack
Discrimination
Acts of Prejudice
Prejudicial Attitudes