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OUTSPOKEN: Jamelia

BRITISH STAR Jamelia says that “institutionalised racism” exists in modern-day society.

The singer, who, last year joined the panel of ITV1 daytime show Loose Women, believes that racial prejudice remains prevalent in the world.

Recalling a recent incident, the Birmingham-born talent says she believes she had been a victim of racial profiling.

“I don’t wanna say we live in a racist world, but there is definitely institutionalised racism that exists in this world,” Jamelia told The Voice.

“Just the other day, I got in a taxi and the driver asked me if I had enough money to pay for the fare.

“I was so offended and I asked him: ‘If I was a white man in a suit, would you ask me that question?’ He actually got quite irate about the situation.”

However, the 33-year-old says the driver was silenced when they arrived at her destination – the singer’s plush Birmingham-based home.

“All I was waiting for was for him [the driver] to pull up at my house. When we pulled up, I said to him: ‘This is my house – my house that I’ve paid for. So don’t judge a book by its cover.’

“I gave him the money, I gave him a tip and I walked off. You could see he was gobsmacked!”

Jamelia added: “We can’t blame people for feeling the way they do, but we have to aim to change these perceptions and the way we change these perceptions is by being great.”

Read the full exclusive interview with Jamelia in Life & Style in next week’s issue of The Voice, out on February 20