Britain, sadly, will perhaps never succeed in breaking free from the age-old accusation of being a racist nation. The last century saw massive changes in the make up of the country, especially when the monarchy’s role started to break loose, and political stability became essential for survival in the new world that was then in the process of being discovered. The world was fast becoming a global village, with media bringing people together in the most unimaginable of ways.
M assive migration of people from all over the globe started to take place. People from all around the world, including Pakistan, poured into UK, and with that started a new era for the English people, who were known for their love and adherence to tradition, reluctance for tolerance, and disciplined and set patterns of life. The typical English tea with cold milk at five, freshly baked scones with butter, Friday night at the pub with mates, and love for football and support for one major club are few glimpses of the typical English behaviour. Suddenly, with penetration of foreign culture in society, in 60s, the typically English setting stayed not-so-typical. There were new traditions merging with one another. For instance, the Indian woman at grocery shop and the ever-so-delicious curry shops in several nooks and corners.
A promising report was disclosed by BBC recently related to this issue, saying that nine out of 10 people agree that being British does not mean being White. The study, by the Mori Social Research Institute, shows that 50 per cent of Britishers believe that UK has good race relations. The figure moves upto 67 per cent among ethnic minorities.
“When I was growing up, Britain used to be such a boring place,” says Tony Benn, former MP and a senior politician. “It was all White and bland, no variety in food and culture. Today, there are more than 70 different nationalities in my granddaughter’s school and she loves it.”
While the cold has started to melt, it has never really left the frigid English atmosphere. And often a racist joke comes along to make a new debate over the age-old issue. In an age when political correctness has urged the masses to abandon terminology that is either racist or sexist — surely a joke with racist overtones is no exception. It comes as no surprise then that politics is tainted by the spectre of controversy — and Ann Winterton is sadly no exception.
Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith proved that he adhered to zero tolerance on racism within the Tory party when he sacked shadow rural affairs minister Anne Winterton, earlier this week. This was after Winterton publicly joked that Pakistanis are “Ten a penny” in Britain. Mr Duncan Smith gave the MP the choice — resign or be sacked when the Sunday Mirror reported that she had made an offensive joke at the expense of British Asians, at a rugby club dinner last week in her Congleton constituency. Winterton 61, chose the option of being sacked, believing that a “fulsome apology was enough”. Winterton remarked that she “certainly meant no offence. I apologise unreservedly if anybody felt offended by my remarks”.
A fellow Tory said, “Iain was absolutely right. This was an offensive and sinister joke”.
It is without a doubt that multi-racial Britain is presently sitting on a time bomb waiting to explode, and provocative, indignant statements only serve to stir up deep-rooted animosities. Winterton’s comment was delivered in obvious poor taste, as it was said a day after the British National Party (BNP) managed to secure its first council seats in almost a decade. And, more damagingly, the comment was made soon after the BNP had won three seats in the nearby Burnley council.
Her remarks outraged Black Tory Peer, Lord Taylor, who led the call for her sack. Duncan Smith’s swift action was praised by the Commission for Racial Equality as well as Lord Taylor, who criticized former Tory leader William Hague’s refusal to reprimand outspoken former Tory MP John Townsend for last year’s controversial statement, in which he referred to Britain as a ‘mongrel race’. Taylor said that Hague had “discovered you cannot pander to racism and win an election — Iain Duncan Smith has to learn that lesson very quickly”.
However, on a radio show, Lord Taylor did state that “simply sacking Ann Winterton is like putting a plaster over a wound,” as racism within the Conservative government was apparent according to Baroness Flather, who is an Asian peer. She believes that in order to foster better relations with ethnic minorities, and in light of this recent scandal, Mr Duncan Smith could meet with Pakistani community leaders in order to achieve a better understanding of both communities. Alternatively, there were reports that certain members of the Tory party felt that Mrs Winterton should have been allowed to stay.
The infamous joke told by Mrs Winterton is as follows: An Englishman, a Cuban, a Japanese man and a Pakistani were all on the train. The Cuban threw a Havana cigar out of the window saying that they were ‘10-a-penny’ in his country. The Japanese man threw out a Nikon Camera remarking that they also were ‘10-a-penny’ in his homeland. Finally, the Englishman picked up the Pakistani and threw him out of the window. When all the other passengers asked him to account for his actions, the Englishmen simply remarks, “They are 10-a-penny in my country”. A friend of Winterton said the joke was intended to be light-hearted and should be seen in the context of a rugby club. However, even the burly rugby players of Congleton were said to be taken aback by Winterton’s comment. Restaurateur Anan Islam, who sponsors Congleton Rugby Union club, said he would withdraw his support for the Club following Winterton’s comments. He said, “She is not an ordinary person, she is a public personality and she cannot make that kind of a comment”
Despite the recent furore, Mrs Winterton, who has been an MP for 19 years, will still continue her work for both her constituency as well her responsibilities as a back-bencher. Winterton’s comments ironically follow the equally ill-fated and racist jokes made by comedian Stan Boardman during an award ceremony for Leeds United Football Club. The lowest point in the night was when he made reference to last year’s trial of Jonathan Woodgate and Lee Bowyer, who were cleared for assaulting Sarfaz Najeib. Both men were present in the audience.Both men were present in the audience.
The appalled audience listened in stony silence as Boardman quipped “I see Woodgate and Bowyer are here tonight. I hear they went to a club last night. When they came out, one said to the other, ‘I could murder an Indian’. Boardman also insulted an Asian member of the audience after the man jeered in response to the comedian’s comments. Boardman remarked, “Why don’t you go back to your curry house or shop in Bradford? Your elephant’s waiting outside.” Boardman’s defence was that the Daily Mirror’s report was one-sided, and that they had got the jokes wrong, “every single one of them”.
In the space of just a couple of days, both a prominent MP and a comedian have proved that a comedy of errors has no place in a society that is trying to evolve and resolve the mistakes of yesteryear. Considering the present social climate, Winterton’s comment was more than inappropriate. Free speech is one thing, but it is a totally different matter when it becomes a tool of unnecessary evil. If Jean Marie Le Pen can be thwarted in his attempts to secure the presidential position by our French neighbours, why should a Tory minister’s crude excuse for party banter be tolerated as well. However, it did not end here. In the space of just a week, another Tory has been forced to resign over another ill-advised comment pertaining to race.
Sampson was forced to resign on Monday over an Internet article headed There is nothing wrong with racism. This essay stated that there were indeed different levels of intelligence between the races. Mr Sampson had said, “Yellow-skinned Orientals tend to be brighter than Whites. Negroes tend to be less bright.” Mr Sampson, a Sussex University Computing professor, wrote on his website, that being attracted to someone of the same ethnicity was a ‘normal universal part of human nature’. He described multiculturalism as ‘wicked madness’. Amid a furious reaction, he was asked to resign from Wealden District Council in East Sussex by the leader of its Tory group, Mr Rupert Thornily-Taylor. Mr Sampson had insisted “I have written about racism for 30 years. I don’t think I should resign.” He also added, “If told that I am a racist, I don’t splutter indignant denials.”
At present, it is no surprise that race and racism has been dominating press coverage as much as it has. Although Labour Minister, Peter Hain, called for Geoffrey Sampson to quit, he too has now become a target for scrutiny when he recently angered many British Muslims by accusing them of being “very isolationist”, and warning them that they were making themselves incredibly vulnerable to extremists, or in simple terms race-hate mongers. While issues related to racism keep on making headlines in media, people continue to pour into Britain from all over the world. There is something inviting and invigorating in these sad and crowded streets, the beautiful scenery and the mirthful people who keep on oscillation between the tags of racists and non-racists.
Britain, sadly, will perhaps never succeed in breaking free from the age-old accusation of being a racist nation. The last century saw massive changes in the make up of the country, especially when the monarchy’s role started to break loose, and political stability became essential for survival in the new world that was then in the process of being discovered. The world was fast becoming a global village, with media bringing people together in the most unimaginable of ways.
