Page 7 - Anti-Racism Pocketbook for Schools and Academies
P. 7
Defining racism
One of the most suited definitions of racism according to
Merriam-Webster is: the systemic oppression of a racial
group to the social, economic, and political advantage of
another. Further to this, this systemic oppression can be due
to the belief that there are innate differences between
different racial and ethnic groups that makes some groups
inherently different.
However, having the belief that race determines superiority
hinders our ability to treat others fairly and with the respect
needed to make students feel capable of accomplishments.
This form of oppression is often reflected in behaviour and
attitudes towards ethnic groups of people.
After reviewing the statistics provided by the Equality and
Human Rights Commission below, it is clear that racism is an
important issue within the education system in UK and the
general population that needs to be addressed:
• Just 6% of black school leavers attended a Russell Group
university, compared with 12% of mixed and Asian
school leavers and 11% of white school leavers
• Black Caribbean and Mixed White/Black Caribbean
children have rates of permanent exclusion about 3x
that of the pupil population as a whole
• Rates of prosecution and sentencing for black people
were 3x higher than for white people, this is 18 per
thousand of the population compared with six per
thousand population for white people
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