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BlackandBritish
Britainisamultiracialcountry.YetalthoughBritainisreputedtobeacountry
whereethnicminoritiesintegrateeasily,Britain'sBlacksalsoknownasAfro
Caribbeanscertainlysufferfromadegreeofpassivediscrimination.Andwhen
timesarehard,thingsoftengetworse.
FreewaymagazinelooksatthestoryoftheBlackcommunityintoday'sBritain.

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Section1Background.

Inthenineteenfifties,Britainwasanationin
needofmen.Adecadeafterthesecondworld
war,itwasacountrywithlotsofchildren,butnot
enoughmentoworkinthemines,thefactories
andthepublicservices.
Hundredsofthousandsofyoungmenhad
beenkilledduringthewarwhocouldtaketheir
place?Therewasaneasyanswermenfromthe
colonies!BritainwasstillthecapitalofanEmpire
thatstretchedtothefourcornersoftheearth.In
thedevelopingcountriesoftheCommonwealth,
thereweremillionsofyoungmen,justlookingfor
work.WhentheBritishauthoritiesofferedthemthechancetocometoBritainandwork,thousands
wantedtocome.
Mostcamewithouttheirfamiliesbutsoon,astheysettledintotheirnewcountryandtheirnew
jobs,theypaidfortheirfamiliestocomeovertoo.WhileafewcamefromAfrica,thelargest
contingentofBlackimmigrantscamefromJamaicaandtheotherislandsthatmakeuptheWest
Indies.
By1960,"AfroCaribbeans"andtheirfamilieshadsettledinlargenumbersinseveralof
Britain'scitiesusuallyinthepoorestandmostunattractiveparts.Atthetimehowever,the
conditionstheylivedininBritainwerenottoobad,andoftenbetterthanthosetheyhadenjoyedin
theWestIndies.Therewerejobs,sotherewasmoneytherewereschoolsforthechildren.
Thus,withitsyoungfamilies,butfewteenagers,theAfroCaribbeancommunitylivedquietly
besidetheWhitecommunityincitieslikeLondonandWolverhampton,andtherewasnotension.In
reality,thetwocommunitieshardlymixedatalltherewaslittleethnicrivalry,becausegenerally
speakingtherewereenoughjobsforeveryone.Inmanycases,blackworkerstookthejobsthat
whiteworkersdidnotwantbusconductors,railwayporters,andotherjobsthatwerenottoo

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wellpaid.
Aroundtheyear1967,thingsbegantochange.InspiredbytheCivilRightsmovementin
America,andencouragedbytheliberalideologiesofthesixties,Britain'sBlacksbegantolookfora
newidentityandabetterstatusfortheircommunity.Butatthesametime,rightwingnationalist
movementswerestartingtodevelopinsomesectorsofwhitesociety.AformerConservative
minister,EnochPowell,predictedviolentconflictsbetweenBlacksandWhites,andcalledfor
Britain'sBlackstobesentbacktotheircountriesoforigin.HewasexpelledfromtheConservative
Partybecauseofhisextremistviews.
RacialtensionneverthelessbegantogrowinsomeworkingclassdistrictsofLondonandother
cities.Oncetherehadbeenjobsforall,butnowanewproblemwasappearing:unemployment.
Moreandmorepeople,bothBlacksandWhites,beganfindingthemselvesincompetitionfora
fallingnumberofjobs.Profitingfrompeople'smisfortune,newracistpoliticalpartiescameinto
existence.TheNationalFrontandtheBritishNationalPartybeganrecruitingyoungpeople,and
encouragingracism.Hereandthere,gangsofskinheadsbegantowriteracistgraffitiinpublic
placestherewereoccasionalincidentsbetweenblackyouthsandskinheads,butgenerally
speaking,theovertracismoftheNationalFrontdidnotappealtopeopleinBritain.
InmostpartsofBritain,thatisstilltruetoday.Generallyspeaking,Britainisaverytolerant
societybuteveninaverytolerantsociety,thereareafewmisguidedindividualsandgroupswho
continuetojudgepeoplebythecolouroftheirskin.

Section2.
TODAYINBRITAIN.....

Inmostpartsoftoday'sBritain,racism
isnotpartofordinarylife.Mostpeopledo
notjudgeotherpeoplebythecolourof
theirskin.GroupsliketheBritishNational
Partyareverymarginal,anddonot
usuallywinanyelections.Themostugly
formsofracism,atleast,havebeen
rejectedandwhileBritain'sBlacksstill
havemanyformsofprejudicetofight
against,viciousracismisnotusuallyone
ofthem.
Nonetheless,althoughBlackand
Whitecommunitieslivesidebysidein
mostBritishcities,andtherearenot
usuallyvisibletensionsbetweenordinary
people,fromtimetotimeseriousracistincidentstakeplace.
ThemostnotoriousoftheseconcernedablackteenagercalledStephenLawrence,gratuitously
murderedin1993byagangofwhiteyouthsashewaitedatabusstop.Almosteveryweek,racist
incidentsarereportedinthemedia,somewhereinBritain.Perhaps,inapopulationofalmost60
millionpeople,thatisinevitable,eveninacountrywherethevastmajorityofpeopleclaimthatthey
arenotraciallyprejudiced.
Yettherearetwosortsofracism:visibleracism,andinvisibleracism.
ManyblackpeopleinBritainfeelthattheyareregularlydiscriminatedagainstininvisibleways.
UnemploymentishigheramongBlacksthanamongWhites,andBlacksdonotdoaswellatschool
asWhitesoftenbecausetheschoolsthattheygotodonothavehighacademicreputations.
(Asians,ontheotherhand,peoplefromIndia,PakistanorChina,tendtodobetterthanWhite
pupils).
Blackcommunityleadersfrequentlycomplainaboutracisminthepolice,andunfortunately,some

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oftheircomplaintsarejustified.In1999,anofficialreportintothe(London)MetropolitanPolice(the
"Met"),followingthemurderofStephenLawrence,statedthat"institutionalracism"waswidespread
throughoutthepoliceservice.
Sincethen,theMetandotherpoliceforcesinBritainhaveintroducedtoughprogrammestotryto
stopthisformofinvisiblethoughsometimesvisibleracism.Thoughtherehasbeennoserious
violenceinBlackdistrictsofBritishcitiesforovertwentyyears,peoplehavenotforgottenthe
violencethatoccurredinseveralBritishcitiesinthe80's.Eventoday,thereisoftentensionjust
underthesurfaceinplaceslikeBrixton,London,wherepoverty,unemploymentandothersocial
problemsarehigh,andconfidenceinthepoliceisverylow.
Plentyofprojectshavebeenstarted,toprovidejobsandtrainingtoyoungBlacksinthepoorest
partsofthecities.Somehavebeenverysuccessful,andlotsofBlackteenagersdowellatschool,
thengotouniversityordosomethingelseinteresting,andbecomesuccessful.Theyare,
nevertheless,inaminority.MostBlacksinBritaintodaystillliveinthecities,orinthepoorer
districtsofsmalltowns.SixtyyearsafterthefirstAfroCaribbeanswerefirstinvitedtocomeand
workBritain,onlyasmallminorityofBritain'sBlackcommunityhavereallyintegratedintothe
mainstreamofsociety.

Section3:
YOUTHANDRACE

Generallyspeaking,youngBlacksandyoung
Whitesgetontogetherbetterthantheirparents'
generation.Arecentsurveyofteenageattitudes
showedthat70%ofBritishteenagersconsider
themselvestohave"noracialprejudiceatall",
whileonly2%admittobeingraciallyprejudiced.
Therestadmittobeingslightlyprejudiced.
Thereareseveralreasonsforthis.
Firstly,today'syoutharegrowinguptogether,
inasocietywhichismuchmoremultiracialthan
itwasinthepast.Many,ifnotmostBritish
peopleagedoversixtyneversatinaschool
classroomwithpeoplefromdifferentraces
today,onthecontrary,therearefewsecondary
schoolsinBritainthatdonothaveatleastafew
BlackorAsianpupils.Today'sBritishteenagers,
whethertheyareBlack,Whiteoranythingelse,
sharealargedegreeofcommonexperience.
Theyhavebeenthroughthesameschool
system,theyeatthesamefood,theywatchthesametelevision,andtoalargeextent,theylikethe
samemusic.Inshort,mostyoungpeopleinBritaintodayshareasimilarthoughcertainlynot
identicalculture,whateverthecolouroftheirskin.Hopefully,thatcanonlyresultinevenbetter
racerelationsamongfuturegenerations.

EQUALOPPORTUNITIES?

InAmericain2014,thePresidentisblack.Blackpolicemenarefairlycommon:soareblack
politicians,blackmayors,blackMarines,andtoalesserextentblackbusinessmen.
InBritainhowever,therearestillmanyprofessionsinwhichBlackshavenotyetmanagedto
makemuchprogress.
AlthoughBlacksandAsiansmakeupover14%ofthepopulationofLondonandabout8%ofthe
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totalBritishpopulation,youwon'toftenseeablackpoliceman,orablackRoyalMarine.Formany
reasons,Blackshavefoundithardtoenteranumberofprofessionsandonceintheseprofessions,
theyoftenfindithardertogetpromotedthanwhitepeople.
In198140%ofBritain'sWhitesworkedinprofessional,managerialorclericaljobs,only13%of
Blacksheldsimilarjobs.
Blacksdo,nevertheless,holdsomeimportantpositionsin
Britishlifeinthemedia,themosttrustedTVnewsreaderis
TrevorMcDonald,theformeranchorofITV'spopular"Newsat
Ten"programmeandontheBBC,MoiraStewart,alsoblack,
wasoneofthemostpopularnewsreaders.
ManyBritishemployersnowofficiallylabelthemselves
"EqualOpportunitiesEmployers"policeforcesaretryinghardto
recruitmoreblackofficers,andthenumberofblackdoctorsand
lawyersisslowlybutsteadilyrising,asagrowingthoughstill
relativelysmallproportionofblackteenagersgoonto
university,andqualifyforbetterjobs.
In2009therewerefiveBlackMP'sintheHouseof
Commons,includingDavidLammy(photoright).Lammy,who
wasMinisterforhighereducation,wasbroughtupasachildina
poorquarterofLondon.SomepeoplesaythatheisoneofthebrightestM.P'sintheLabourParty...
andpossiblyBritain'sfirstblackPrimeMinister...couldwesayBritain'sBarakObama?
BLACKMUSIC

BlackmusichasdonemorethanmostthingstobringBlackandWhiteculturestogether.
Almostthewholeoftoday'srockandpopmusichasitsrootsinBlackmusic:rock'n'roll,the
baseoftoday'spop,developedoutofthejazzandrhythm'n'bluesofBlackAmerica.England's
Blacks,however,haveaddedtheirownspecificcontributiontocontemporarypopmusic,in
particularthroughreggaemusic,themusicoftheWestIndies.
ReggaecametoEnglandinthelate60'sthroughaninnovativerecordcompanycalledIsland
Records.IslandsoonhelpedlotsofBlackbandsfromtheWestIndiesandfromBritain,ledbyBob
Marley,tobecomepopularwithBritishyouthofallbackgrounds.Otherrecordcompaniessoon
followed,andbegansigningupotherBlackbands.
Beforelong,BlackBritishmusicianswereregularlyfinding
themselvesintheTopTen,whilewhitebandsplayedmoreand
more"black"music,andanincreasingnumberofbands
recruitedmusiciansregardlessoftheircolour.
Today,theworldofmusicisoneofthewaysthatyoung
BritishBlacksdreamofasaroutetosuccess.Theband
Sugarbabestwoblack,onewhiteisthemostsuccessful
Britishgirlgroupofthe21stcenturysofar.Onlyaverysmall
minoritysucceed,ofcourse,inreachingthetop,butinthe
worldofmusic,asintheworldofsport,thedoorstosuccess
arecertainlyopen.Moreimportantlythough,thevirtual
absenceof"race"asanissueinmostsectorsofthemusic
industrytoday(inBritainatleast)hashelpedtobringyoung
peopleofallcolourstogetherinacommoncultureanda
commonheritagethatallrecogniseastheirown.

SPORT

SportisanothersectorinwhichblackBritishstarshavedonealottoimproveracerelations.
When,inthe1980's,thefirstblackfootballersweresignedupbytopBritishfootballclubs,theymet
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seriousdiscriminationandsometimeshostilityfromthefans.Sincethen,mostclubshavetriedhard
toeliminateracismfromthegame,andgenerallytheyhavesucceeded.
Today,withallbutabigotedminorityoffans,Britain'sgreatblackfootballersenjoythesame
statusastheirwhiteteammates.ThesameistrueinathleticsandeveryoneinBritainknowsthat
withoutitsblackathletes,Britainwouldhavebroughtbackalessdistinguishedcollectionofmedals
fromrecentOlympicGames.

WORDGUIDE

appealto:attractAsians:(here)peoplefromAsiabackground:originbigoted:having
extremistandfixedopinionsbitter:strong,nastyboilover:reachapointofcrisisclerical:inan
officeconductor:mansellingticketscontingent:groupdecade:periodoftenyearsenjoy:
benefitfromformer:whousedtobe...geton:livehardly:almostnotimprove:getbetter
innovative:withnewideasissue:problemlawyer:maninthelegalprofessionMP:Memberof
Parliamentmisguided:manipulated,wrongnevertheless:allthesame,howevernotorious:
wellknownforthewrongreasonsovert:clearlyvisiblepoverty:beingpoorprejudice:fixed
andirrationalopinionsprosecute:attackinacourtoflaw,sueprovide:make,createrecruit:
starttoemploy,findriot:rebellion,violencerivalry:competitionsettle:establishahome
share:tohaveincommonsignup:giveacontracttostatus:positionthroughout:inallpartsof
tract:brochure,sheetofpaperugly:unpleasant,nastyunemployment:nothavinganyjob
vehemently:withforceviews:opinions
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Copyingpermittedforpersonalstudy,orbyteachersforusewiththeirstudents.

Studentworksheet

BlackandBritish

Hereisarsumofsection1above.Fillintheblanks,usinginformationfromthearticle.
Mostofthewordsthatyouneedcanbefoundinthearticle.Insomecases,thefirstletterofaword
isgiven,tohelpyou.

Inthe...........,theBritishauthoritiesinvited......................thecoloniestocome....Britain
andworkinjobsforwhichtherewerenot...........workers..........tooktheopportunityand
came.
Atfirstyoungmencame...........,manyofthemfromtheWest..........andbeforelongthey
broughttheirfamiliesover......Withintenyears,therewerelargeAfroCaribbean.............in
severalBritishcities.
Althoughthesenew..............livedinthepoorerpartsofthecities,theyhadpaidjobs,and
theyoftenenjoyedconditionsthatwerebetter..................theyhadknownintheWestIndies.
U........about1967,therewasl........racialtension,becausetherewasworkforeveryone,
andthenewimmigrantsdidthejobsthat........workersdidnotwanttodo.Butthen,following
thesuccessofthe.........RightsmovementintheUSA,Britain'sBlacksbegandemanding

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b.........conditions.
Someright........politiciansbecamealarmedatthenumberofBlacksinBritain,andsaid
thattheys........besentbacktowheretheyhadcomefromatthesametime,therewerethe
firstcasesofracialtension,astheproblemof................begantospread.Someextremeright
.......partiesappeared,e...............xenophobiaandracismbuttheseparties,suchasthe
NationalFrontandtheBritishNationalParty,wereneververys..................
TodayBritainisstillgenerallya.............country,eveniftherearea.........racistshereand
there.

Section2:
TODAYINBRITAIN

Quantifiers:
Section2containsalotof"quantifiers"suchasmost,many,few,several,asmallminority,etc.
Therearethreemaingroupsofquantifiers:
a)thosewhicharenotfollowedbyofunlessfollowedbyaseconddeterminer,
forexample:mostpeople,butmostofthepeople,somecomplaintsbutsomeoftheir
complaints,
b)thosewhicharealwaysfollowedbyof,suchasplenty,none,themajority,
andc)thosethatareneverfollowedbyof,suchasno,every.

AddinthewordOFinthefollowingsentences,whenever(andonlywhen)necessary:

1.Some_____thepeoplewereverypoor.
2.Some_____menbroughttheirfamilieswiththem.
3.Few_____themenwhocamehadbeentoBritainbefore.
4.Therewerefew_____casesofracialtensioninthe1950's.
5.Atthetimetherewereplenty_____jobsforeveryone.
6.Notmany_____blackworkersfoundwellpaidjobs.
7.Several_____theworstracistincidentstookplaceinLondon.
8.Antiracismprogrammeshavebeenintroducedinseveral_____policeforces.
9.Therearemany_____differentformsofracism.
10.Most_____theblackpeopleinBritainstillliveincities.

Section3
Trueorfalse?
Whichofthesestatementsaretrue,andwhicharefalse?
1.Rock`n'rollstartedintheWestIndies.T/F
2.BobMarleyrecordedwithIslandRecords.T/F
3.MusicisoneoftheeasiestwaysforyoungblackpeopletoachievesuccessinBritain.T

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/F
4.Raceisnotusuallyanissueinthemusicindustry.T1F

Forteachers:
Classroompresentation:
ThisFileisfairlyconcentratedinfacts.Thebackgroundarticle(part1)isparticularlyconcentratedin
thisrespect.
Readthroughsections1and2withyourclass,checkingthatstudentsunderstandthe
meaningofwordsandsentencesthenuseoneorotherofthesesectionsasthebasisforanoral
gapfillexercise.
Readthearticlequiteslowly,pausingatfactuallystrategicpoints,andaskingpupilstocomplete
thesentencesprovidingthenecessaryinformation,thoughnotnecessarilyusingthesamewordsas
theoriginal.Hereisapartofsection:the|symbolmarksspotsatwhichyoushouldpause.

Inthenineteenfifties,Britainwas|anationinneedofmen.Adecadeafterthesecond
worldwar,itwasacountrywith|lotsofchildren,butnotenoughmentoworkin|themines,
thefactoriesandthepublicservices.
Hundredsofthousandsofyoungmenhad|beenkilledduringthewarwhocould
taketheirplace?
Therewasaneasyanswer|menfromthecolonies!
BritainwasstillthecapitalofanEmpirethatstretchedto|thefourcornersoftheearth.
InthedevelopingcountriesoftheCommonwealth,thereweremillionsof|youngmen,just
lookingforwork.WhentheBritishauthoritiesofferedthemthechancetocometoBritainand
work,||thousandsjumpedattheopportunity.
Mostcamewithout|theirfamiliesbutsoon,astheysettledintotheirnewcountryand
theirnew|jobs,they|paidfortheirfamiliesto|comeovertoo.WhileafewcamefromAfrica,
thelargestcontingentofBlackimmigrantscamefrom|Jamaicaandtheotherislandsthat
makeuptheh|WestIndies.
By1960,"AfroCaribbeans"andtheirfamilieshadsettledinlargenumbersinseveral
ofBritain'scitiesusuallyinthe|poorestandmostunattractiveparts.

Gapfillexercise(section2):
Herearethesuggestedanswerstotheexercise:
1950's/immigrants/from/to/enough/many.||alone/from/Indies/too(also)/community.
||immigrants/poorest/thanthose/||Until/little/work/white/Civil/better.||wing/should/
back/unemployment/wing/encouraging/successful.||tolerant/few.

Quantifiersexercise,(section2)
Answers.
1of,2/,3of,4/,5of,6/,7of,8/,9/,10of.

True/Falseexercise,(section3):
Answers.
1.false2true3false(oneoftheways)4true.

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