Figures suggesting rise in racism in schools come under fire

THERE are few people, no matter what their ethnic background, who would argue that Britain is more racist than it was 30 years ago.

For all the perceived successes and failures of multiculturalism, we live in a society that is more tolerant of different groups, one where racism and racist language is no longer acceptable.

But despite the giant strides in racial equality taken during recent decades, it's an issue that refuses to go away despite the best efforts of campaigners and politicians. One aspect that has caused particular concern is the level of racism reported among children.

Last year, the Yorkshire Post revealed that more than 5,000 racist incidents had been recorded in Yorkshire's schools over the previous two years – with more than 3,000 of these happening in primary schools.

Some commentators say racism in schools reflects what children are hearing in their homes and communities, and it has even been claimed that schools have been targeted by far-Right groups wanting to spread racist agendas into the classroom.

But film-maker and anti-racism campaigner Adrian Hart believes what he calls a growing "race relations industry" is not helping. On Monday he'll be in Leeds to talk about his new book, The Myth of Racist Kids, in which he claims that well-meaning policies have undermined teachers' ability to deal with everyday classroom incidents.

"It (racism) is a big concern of local authorities and the Government who have adopted a zero tolerance to racist incidents in schools." This sounds fine on the face of it, but Hart claims the devil is in the detail. "What we have is a policy started in 2002 when the Government instructed local education authorities to consider reporting incidents of a racist nature. A racist incident being defined as 'any incident which is perceived to be racist by the victim or any other person'," he says. "But what's happening is that reported racist incidents are being puffed up as an endemic problem in schools which simply doesn't exist."

The guidelines for reporting such incidents were issued following the Stephen Lawrence inquiry, but Hart says while they are suitable for the police, it's wrong to adapt them for schoolchildren. He also questions whether racism is still a major issue in schools. "Racism used to be an everyday event, something that was laughed about on TV. So in our society today, where diversity has changed the social landscape, how is it that racism has become such a big problem?"

He says school teachers should be allowed to use their own judgment in deciding whether or not something is racist. But he believes there is too much pressure on schools and teachers to report every incident. "Most of these racist incidents reported come from primary schools and a lot of it is name calling which is overheard and gets written up. One teacher told me 'you may think it's daft but the best thing to do is report it.' But when kids start calling each other names it just shows they can be nasty little so and so's, big surprise."

The counter argument is that we need to be vigilant and that educating youngsters at an early age is the best way of combating racism. However, Hart believes this has gone too far. "The ethos at the moment is that children are susceptible to the social disease of racism and it should be nipped in the bud, otherwise it will incubate and grow. But to me this is a vulgar notion of how children develop," he says. "If you hear a child say something nasty you should be firm and say that it's unacceptable and hurtful but then you draw a line in the sand, you don't then racialise that situation."

Hart, who is also a lecturer to special needs children, points out that young children often use words without understanding them properly. "All I'm saying is don't racialise it because that leads to tension between kids and you're more likely to create a culture of victimhood," he says.

"Britain is less racist than it has been for decades and rather than trying to disable the diversity that our primary school kids experience now, we should embrace it."

Adrian Hart will discuss The Myth of Racist Kids at a free public talk held at Leeds Civic Hall on Monday at 7pm.