Image Text:

ICON: Mandela fought for most of his life against racism (PA)

EMPEROR HAILE Selassie once famously said: “Until the colour of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes… everywhere is war” – but is the idea of a post-racial society a pipe dream or something to genuinely work towards?

YES - Joyce Adwoa Agyekum

UNLIKE THE US, whose festering race issues have once again burst to the surface with the deaths of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davies, the UK seems to be slowly but surely advancing when it comes to racial acceptance and integration.

In a poll conducted in the aftermath of the George Zimmerman case, 40 per cent of people in the UK said that race relations were good in comparison to just 15 per cent in the US.

Although the history and dynamics of the populations in both countries are different, the poll highlights the hard work conducted by grassroots organisations, which have organised many successful cross-cultural community initiatives and events.

While it remains to be seen whether the Trayvon Martin case will become another watershed moment for America’s race problems, the death of Stephen Lawrence and the campaign that followed definitely was for the UK; the country is all the better for the long, hard self-examination it was forced to give itself.

Of course, there is still much room for improvement: companies like Rare Recruitment are still fighting to place ethnic minorities in top jobs and the make-up of some influential areas of society like the political arena still resemble an old boy’s club.

I would argue that the time is approaching in the UK when we will not be asking if a post-racial society is possible, but if a post-class obsessed society can ever exist.

NO - Kiri Kankhwende

How many times have you heard that phrase ‘I don’t see race’ said by a well-meaning (usually white) person? If a post-racial society is about a utopia where race doesn’t exist, count me out.

Some people say we’re already there (we’re not), since there are no longer laws blocking black people from participating in civic life, but I don’t think it’s something to aim for.

The world is rich in diverse races and cultures, why whitewash it?
Being black is part of my identity; don’t pretend you can’t see me – just don’t hold it against me.

We yearn for a post-racial society because we see race as a negative thing, when it’s racism that’s the problem.

The ongoing revelations in the Stephen Lawrence case show how embedded racism is in our institutions and society and that’s what we need to fight.

These struggles are part of our present and also our history as a nation.
A pluralistic, multi-racial society is not without challenges, but we have to have the difficult conversations and debates to learn how to live alongside each other.

The dream of a race neutral society is unrealistic but also undesirable – we can become better as a nation by increasing our cultural intelligence as different communities talk, listen and exchange with one another.
Race and difference is not the problem; prejudice is, and we all have our own to tackle.

I don’t think we can have a post-racial society but we can certainly work towards a post-racist one.

Our community speaks with many voices. Each week we bring you opposing views on a topical issue affecting black people. The arguments are crafted by the talented pool of writers from Media Diversified (www.mediadiversified.org), which aims to encourage greater diversity in the British media. What do you think? Join the debate.
Compiled by Maurice Mcleod