Playing the Race Card

I've been following the Obama - Clinton battle with interest. It seems Obama will win the nomination and maybe become the first black president. This is a massive deal because in the US - and in Britain, ethnic minority people still rarely reach the higher echelons of power. It seems sad to me that the battle between Barack and Hillary is about black versus woman and shows that we still have a long way to go before we get gender and racial equality. In any event, racism and sexism are 2 totally different things and it's really annoying and patronising to think of them in the same way.

On Fivelive this morning they have been talking about race discrimination. When people say they felt they didn't get jobs because of their race, they are accused of "playing the race card" because there is no proof that it wasn't just because they weren't up to the job. But discrimination can be much more subtle. Few employers would say "I'm not employing someone black". But the speakers on fivelive noted the shock when they walked into a interview because based on their CV, the employer was expecting someone white. Sometimes discrimination isn't blatant, its a feeling. No doubt there are some people who do bemoan everything and everyone as racist - but they should not distract us from the genuine cases. Discrimination can also be in terms of the networks we have, our contacts and our schooling which are still sadly often defined by race.


“Playing the race card” is a horrible way to describe someone’s attitude because you are suggesting that they are moaning and have no business doing so. What is so wrong with referring to race as an explanation for why you didn’t get a job? Why are we frightened to admit that many of us make judgments about each other based on it? I think it’s because the idea of racism has become extremely value-laden. If you suggest someone made a racist comment or remark, most will recoil in horror. Or they’ll start a sentence with the classic “I’m not racist but…”.


Look also at the media. The recent stabbings of teenagers in London has been covered by the press but mainly when the victim is white. Jimmy Mizen and Rob Knox are the 2 white victims that I can easily name because they were plastered over the front pages of the tabloids. They were church goers, or had a part in a Harry Potter film but more importantly, they were white. They have been dragged into the awful seedy world of gangs. Not to worry if it's a black life, we'll just mention it briefly and move on. It's so sad. And don't get me started on my opinions had Madeleine McCann been white.

So, rant over. I had to get that off my chest. I'm not a loony left winger but I do find it sad that in this day and age there is still a racist undercurrent in our society. I am an anti-racist and a feminist. Will we have a black Prime Minister? Not in my lifetime.

This article is interesting… Click