I wouldn’t say that there is no such thing as racism any more, but I really do think there is much less of it than there used to be. Racism originally grew out of a fear of the unknown; of strangers coming to your village to steal your food and water. I just want you to know that I was opposed to the idea of a black James Bond until someone came up with the idea of Idris Elba in the role. Ian Fleming might not have envisioned someone like him as 007, but boy – I could!
I’m not actually a huge fan of initiatives, however well-meaning, that target individuals according to their skin colour. At a time when society has apparently never been more certain of the need to break down racial barriers, we seem, in many respects, to be doing everything possible to build them up. Indeed, so obsessed are many of today’s socio-political influencers with race, it strikes me that they would do well to be reminded of the injunction by Martin Luther King that people should be judged not according to the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character.
Amen to that and, as a result of the interracial societies that we all now live in, that is what many of us actually do. The trouble is, if a complaint or criticism is aimed at a non-white person, a frequent retort, even in these days of the greatest equality ever, is that the complainant is ‘racist’. Most often, the complaint is not based on race but based on the competence or attitude of the person involved. But the race taunt always sits waiting, just below the surface.
So I have some sympathy with the leaders of two top private schools – Dulwich and Winchester – in their decision to reject a large donation from a former pupil, Professor Sir Bryan Thwaites, who had intended for his money to fund scholarships for disadvantaged white boys. I can well imagine, upon being notified of the gift, their sharp intake of breath and the question immediately forming in their minds: why only white boys?
Why indeed? Don’t all disadvantaged people deserve a helping hand?
But there is another lingering question: what if the money had been earmarked for disadvantaged black boys? Would the schools have been so queasy about it? I’m going to stick my neck out and say no.
I’m sure that statement is true. Today’s attitude is that there can be no such thing as a disadvantaged white person but there are plenty of them, everywhere. There is no such thing as the white privilege that so many claim exists. Lots of white people fall through the cracks in housing, poverty, mental illness and all the other things that can make life miserable.
And here lies the contradiction at the heart of so much of the debate around race. Once you categorise one racial group as victims, how can you not then do the same for those among another racial group whose circumstances might be even more unfavourable? God knows a white kid from Wigan is just as worthy of the chance of a top-drawer education as a black child from Tottenham. Indeed, all the studies show that white boys from deprived backgrounds are among the worst performers at school and the least likely to go on to higher education.
But hang on. Everything the modern world is telling us is that this is not so. White privilege is a real thing, and only black kids can be underprivileged. Or so they say.
But that is not true and we all know it.
Ultimately, once you get into the game of dividing people up by race, you have to go all-in. Otherwise you will end up breeding resentment in any group that is neglected. That’s why it’s such a dangerous game to play in the first place.
Unherd
My favourite example of all is Meghan Markle. If Kate, Duchess of Cambridge is criticised for something (not that it happens often), then it is recognised as an attack on her judgment or advisors. If Meghan, Duchess of Sussex is criticised (often deservedly so), it is racism. That is so wrong, and it does nothing for equality. We need to be able to criticise non-white people in the same way as we criticise white people. Otherwise, non-white people really will never be equal, which is just stupid. Of course they are equal and they can make the same mistakes as anyone else.
Racism would fade away on its own if certain groups didn’t constantly bring the subject up. We seem to talk about race these days more than we ever did. I have employed people of many different races in my time as an employer, and the consideration was never – “Should I employ a black (or whatever) person”? It was always – “Is this person going to be able to do a good job and fit in within the firm”? Some didn’t. Most did. Some white people were dreadful employees. Race is a bad benchmark for employee behaviour. It means absolutely nothing; it is the character and the attitude of the employee that counts for everything.
Taika Waititi, movie director and former New Zealander of the Year is one who is constantly calling New Zealand a racist place. He is also rumoured to be in discussions for him to be involved in the next Star Wars movie. All that racism in New Zealand when he was getting himself established in the movie industry must have done him no harm but never will you hear Taika admit that. It is a shame because he could do so much to dispel the myths about racism in this country if he chose. If we were really a very racist country, he would never have been able to succeed in the way he has. Does Taika think he has done it all on his own, in spite of all those racist white people? Why did I pay to go and see some of his early movies then, if I am a racist?
I wish, instead of constantly being accused of being racist, we could all simply get on with living alongside our fellow men, whatever the colour of their skin. In the meantime, I leave the last word to Paul Emery at Unherd:
[…] why, in our fervent efforts to prove that race doesn’t matter, we seem to have made it never more relevant.
