Fdo: ALVARO COSGAYA RODRIGUEZ
2.1.5. Documentación de Obra
An analysis of the definition and conceptualisation of racism shows that there remain major challenges linked to these. In such a scenario, this research supports the use of racialisation to help understand the inherent complexities linked with such an analysis. According to Wolfe (2002), the concept of racialisation could better explain the evolution of racism, as it provides a multi- layered and multi-dimensional framework. Solomos (1989) further contends that such statements encapsulate the need to address potential assumptions linked to the perceived inferiority of racialised groups and aim to present common-sense understanding across a multi-layered framework. Cole and Maisuria (2007) further conclude that such assertions may be essential in ensuring that there is a dynamic understanding of the intersections that exist between race and other potentially challenging elements, including gender, sexuality, nationality and class. This research will therefore address the different levels on which such racial implications have evolved.
In a micro-level analysis, racialisation helps to expand individual implications of bias and racist tendencies. It is a myth that most people tend to argue about the absence of individual bias and racial discrimination in the post- colonial world. Gilroy (2005) acknowledges the presence of racism, which continues to exist despite the acceptance of people from various cultures in contemporary Britain. The micro-social theories that help people understand interactions can cast light on the level of racialisation at the micro level (Dunton and Fazio, 1997). Roberts (2006) asserts that, from an interactionist
viewpoint, face-to-face encounters and identifying agential entity have been credited with understanding the concept of racialism. Furthermore, Lal (1995) claims that during the process of comprehending the race and ethnicity of people in the context of the US, it is important to understand how people communicate based on their culture through interpersonal interactions. Such ideas were also adopted by popular universities and incorporated into their research on immigrants and how Southern Blacks adapted to urban life (Lal, 1995). Research on bias and racism has indicated the importance of social and cultural norms in which the majority (Whites) blatantly show their biased behaviour and thereby portray a racist attitude in society (Roberts, 2006; Dunton and Fazio, 1997).
Research papers indicate that violence that occurs due to racism is most commonly perpetrated by individuals who interact and live among communities and families who openly support the system of racism and ethnic hatred (Webster, 2003). Some people who have experience of welfare settings in the US have been exposed to internalised views on the common racism displayed towards minorities. On the other hand, the egalitarian ideology states that it can exist mutually with an anti-Black sentiment/ ideology that leads to distrust, fear, anxiety and hostility (Phillips, 2011). Such ideologies also identify the inherent two-facedness of bias in which people can have both negative and positive views on minority groups, which may elaborate the complicated nature of the relationship shared by biased attitudes and racial behaviour (Terry et al., 2001; Pettigrew and Meertens, 1995). Hence, it can be inferred that the impact of familial relations and commonly inscribed values, which are observed in people of various ethnicities or genders, is seen in the case of micro-level racialisation. Moreover, it is observed that such attitudes are constantly shifting rather than being static and are easily influenced by interactions with multicultural groups and local environmental factors. The arguments made showcase the inherent challenges that existed in the US society which characterised racial tension. The concept of CRT emerged in the US in the 1980s as a framework whose goal was to understand the endemic presence of race within the US. Its key
analytical principles largely aimed at addressing the ideological claims of neutrality and meritocracy that were put forth by laws and social policies (Warmington, 2012). The use of CRT analyses ensured that the ‘taken for granted’ racialised processes were questioned to address the narratives and perspectives of Black people. However, as Gillborn (2008) argues, the notion of racism and its relevance to England is different from that of the US given the differences in the countries’ histories. The impact of racism on the socio- economic progress of the Black community in the UK is more difficult to contextualise given the nature of imperialist history and colonial assumptions of supremacy of one group over another (Gillborn, 2008). Taylor (2016) contends that while racism can be global in its contention of White supremacy, the evolution of this political system can be attributed to the initial assumptions of European settlers who established formal and informal systems which provided privilege and socio-economic advantages to specific groups of people. Gillborn (2005) also argues that the evolution of whiteness and power in education has arguably signalled a shift in focus, which helped address, the greater generational implications of racism in England when compared to the US. Similarly, Gilroy (1993) argues that the historical dimensions of Black life offer an insight into the continued assessment that true Englishness belongs to the White natives and not the Black immigrants. Gilroy (1993b) also argues that the lack of Black subjectivities in the account of racism in Britain remains the major factor, which influences racial equality issues. Warmington (2012) also argues that racism in England signifies a strong interpretation of national pride. Gilroy (1990) also argues that Black people’s representation in British history has been from an object perspective rather than a subject perspective. The importance of critical race theory in England therefore is largely to encourage subjective accounts. As Hall (1988) and Bressey (2016) argued, the notion of the Black subject needs to be further examined to understand Black people as social actors and history makers who are central to the current social formation of Britain.
Focusing more on the next level, the meso-analytical level, gives an indication that it is mainly concerned with positioning and adding context to factors that are either temporally or spatially based. The following are
considered to be parts of meso-analytical theory: socioeconomic loss, composition of the neighbourhood and its impact, discourses in political media, the implementation of political power and its enrichment and, finally, the process followed in institutions (Phillips, 2011). A spotlight on socioeconomic disadvantage and class has always been important to social policies that analyse the poverty of a society, the inequalities practised and the redistribution of all entities. The dynamics observed in the interactions among community members and the arrangements in institutions are also part of the range of theorising (Banerjee and Singer, 2017). Another key dimension in the field of racism and prejudice is political engagement which, if absent, has been considered a vital marker for social elimination in democratic surroundings (Burchardt et al., 2002). The common-sense comprehension in a person’s social life that helps in acknowledging micro- level processes comprises famous discourses on how to deal with prejudice, ethnic background and racism. Psycho-social abilities tend to identify the emotional component of racism, which may be considered a threat to minority affected communities (Hoggett, 1992).
In the post-industrialised contemporary world, the nature of welfare has been changed completely. The contexts in which social welfare and services are offered to people have been influenced by deindustrialisation, owner- occupation, the increase in social housing residents, and increases in wealth, status, salaries and power. Moreover, the new face of decentralised governance and public management has completely transformed the way in which organisations in the public sector have been regulated and later converted into primary operations (Aranda and Vaquera, 2015). All of these have resulted in macro-environmental changes regarding the policy and provisions which characterise racism across the UK. Finally, on the macro level, institutional challenges need to be addressed. Notions of institutional racism almost always result in disadvantages to people who experience such racist behaviour in various surroundings, from housing to education, and even to employment agencies. Ashe and Nazroo (2015) conclude that people of colour are more likely to live in poverty and are more likely to be in
Khan (2015) also argues that achievement of employment success and academic success is lower in BME communities when compared to the White population. Goodfellow and McFarlane (2018) identifies that between 2010 and 2015, the number of young people from minority ethnic backgrounds who remained unemployment was highest in the Black community when compared to other minorities. All of this supports the notion that there is a lack of targeted policies to support the needs of the Black population in the UK. Furthermore, there is also an argument that people of colour frequently experience racism in their workplace, leading to institutional challenges (Lavalette et al., 2018). The factors that determine macro-level structures showcase significant institutional macro-environmental factors which impact racial issues. As Goodfellow (2018) rightly concludes, racial injustice and anti-immigration politics in the UK further contribute to the institutionalisation of racism and its associated rhetoric. The persistence of significant racial inequalities as a product of racism creates an imperial nostalgia and a national identity that is tied to whiteness and which continues to influence the inherent challenges of racism in the country.