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February 08 Racial Justice Update
Welcome to this month’s update. We welcome contributions from our readers to this updates. This news letter reaches around 100 mail boxes each month and it is available on the internet. Please send us your items of news, events etc. to be published in the next month edition.
Features:
The State of Scotland:
- Last week the Moderator of the Church of Scotland drew attention from the press when she pointed out to the prevalence of anti-English attitudes in Scotland.
- The Strathclyde Police announce rising of the number of Racist incidents
- A top official is quoted making a remark (a few years back) that Scotland is a ‘narrow, Presbyterian and Racist’ country
From the Old Country, a poem by Stephen Eric Smyth
1. Racist incidents in Scotland:
Residents unite to beat racists
A Glasgow community has united in an attempt to stop racist thugs blighting their neighbourhood after a series of incidents. Members of the new Glasgow South West International Forum have vowed to stamp out race and hate crime in the area. …. Nigerian minister Michael Angley Ogwache, 42, is one of the many determined to stand up to racist thugs after being confronted by a gang. Reverend Ogwache, who moved to Govan with wife Christiana and their three children around two years ago, said: "I was in Elderpark Street at the drop-in centre. I came out to my car and they broke the side mirror. "I tried to talk to them and one got out a knife. Another one spat right into my mouth. "I reported it to police straight away. It's very important to report these incidents. The third-party reporting is a good idea." Evening Times
Moderator says anti-English bigotry is 'like sectarianism'
Anti-English bigotry in Scotland is on a par with sectarianism and should not be tolerated as part of a "healthy society," according to the leader of the Kirk. Scotsman
Girl leads teen gang's race attack against Sikh man on bus
A teenage girl led a racist attack by a group of youths against a Sikh man on a bus in Edinburgh. Scotsman
Incidents of racism rise by one fifth
The number of racist incidents recorded by Scotland's biggest police force has increased by almost 20% in the past five years. Figures just released by Strathclyde Police show that last year there were 1,853 such crimes in their region, compared with 1,259 in 2002. During this period there was one murder which was classified as being racially motivated, however there were 10 attempted murders which police believe had a racial element. Scotsman
Six years for woman who knifed Asian boy
A woman who stabbed an Asian teenager, telling him "you're all terrorists" was today jailed for six years. The High Court in Edinburgh heard Mary McKay, 32, walked up to Tarik Husan and Sarbaz Kamil at a bus stop in a Glasgow. She knifed Mr Husan repeatedly in the chest and arm, and later told police: "I just stabbed a guy with the same colour of skin as a terrorist." Evening Times also BBC
A clash of cultures at cold water campsite
Oh, the scaldies call us tinker dirt and they sconce our bairns in school,
But who cares what a scaldy says, for scaldy's but a fool.
They never hear the yorlin's song, nor see the flax in bloom,
For they're aye cooped up in houses when the yellow's on the broom.
Readers of travellers' tales such as Betsy Whyte's the Yellow on the Broom will be familiar with the hardship and intolerance that Scotland's gypsies have suffered. It's easy to assume that those days are long gone. But for one gypsy family, it appears that little has changed. Herald
2. Developments, Reports and Investigations
Anti-racism lessons in nurseries
Pre-school children in Glasgow's nurseries are to receive anti-racism education, in a move hailed as a Scottish first by the local authority. Glasgow City Council said the Different Together anti-racist curriculum was a "powerful tool" which would be embedded into the day-to-day life of nurseries. BBC
Labour aide brands Scotland as racist
Des Browne, the Scottish and defence secretary, was under pressure this weekend to sack one of his top aides for describing Scotland as a “narrow, Presbyterian and racist” country. John McTernan, a special adviser to Browne and former Downing Street aide to Tony Blair, made the comments in a personal e-mail to a Labour politician. Sunday Times
Row over insulting email
A senior government spin doctor is at the centre of a row over emails he sent in which he described Scotland as "narrow, Presbyterian and racist." John McTernan, a special adviser at the Scotland Office, made the remarks when he was a consultant at the Scottish Arts Council in 2002. He has slammed the arts quango for releasing the correspondence without his knowledge, describing it as a breach of privacy. Sunday Herald
Pledge to reclaim Scottish history for our children
Scottish history is to be restored to its position at the heart of the school curriculum to combat young people's "ignorance" of their nation's past, the education secretary promises today. Scotsman
Breeding racism?
Several bloggers are outraged at the BBC survey showing foreign-born mothers "are costing NHS maternity services £350m a year". It's clearly legitimate to look at how overstretched NHS services are but why research where mothers were born? Such a survey could clearly stir anger against immigrants - and raises more questions than it answers. Guardian Unlimited
3. Asylum refugees:
Asylum: 50 families a week told they can stay in Scotland
Fifty asylum seekers a week are being granted leave to remain in Scotland, as part of a massive Home Office drive to clear a backlog of 400,000 files, The Scotsman can reveal. Scotsman
£9m for English language training
Asylum seekers and others new to Scotland are to benefit from £9 million of funding for English language classes. Over the next three years the new funding could deliver up to 7,000 more places for migrant workers, asylum seekers, refugees and others who are eager to learn English. In 2006 there were more than 19,000 people in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes, an increase of 30 per cent on the previous year. Scottish Government
End misery of jail life at Dungavel
A teacher who sees at first hand the heartache of Dungavel detention centre's asylum seekers has called for it to be shut. Linda McMahon, of Pollokshields, Glasgow said the former jail in Lanarkshire is "like a prison whose residents don't when they'll be released". The 56-year-old is one of 20 volunteers who, through the Scottish Detainee Visitors scheme, supports people held there. Every second Monday Linda visits asylum seekers who often feel depressed and isolated and she said: "Sometimes they want to talk about what they are going through other times they just want you to hold their hand." Evening Times
Churches and asylum campaigners dismayed by Leeds deportation
Churches and campaigners for asylum justice in Leeds and beyond are dismayed at the deportation of a member of a Baptist congregation. They say it highlights deep concerns about the fairness of the United Kingdom asylum system. Ekklesia
4. Immigration
British, Polish churches at odds over care for migrants in UK
Roman Catholic leaders in Britain and Poland have publicly disagreed over how best to provide pastoral care for large numbers of Polish migrants currently living and working in the United Kingdom. "It remains our position that Polish Catholics should look for their own priests and parishes," Bishop Ryszard Karpinski, the Polish church's delegate, told Ecumenical News International on 18 January. "But we've no means of forcing anyone. If people want to come to Polish churches, they come," he said. "If they want to go to English-speaking services, they go." Ecumenical News International
New points based system begins
Details of Britain's new Australian-style points based immigration system (PBS) were announced today as the Government published the rules for highly skilled foreign workers applying to come to the UK. The regulations will start coming into force on 29 February when any highly skilled foreign nationals currently working in Britain who want to extend their stay will need to apply under the new system. In April, the new system will begin to be rolled out overseas when anyone from India who wants to work in the UK as a highly skilled migrant will need to apply under PBS. By the summer the new highly skilled system will operate worldwide. BIA
Non-EU doctors barred from UK posts
New immigration rules will stop doctors from outside the EU applying for postgraduate training posts in the UK, it has been announced. Scotsman
More pupils from eastern Europe
Children from Eastern Europe now make up almost a third of the Dundee pupils who need extra help in learning English, writes Grant Smith, education reporter. Last year there were 65 such children being aided by the specialists from the bilingual pupils’ support service (BPSS). The Currier
Trafficking
30 Saved From Sex Traffickers In Scotland
Police have rescued more than 30 women thought to have been trafficked into the sex industry in Scotland. Herald
European convention on sex trafficking welcomed by churches
Church groups in Europe have welcomed the entry into force of a pan-European convention against human trafficking, and described it as a major step in ensuring the protection of the human rights of trafficked persons in Europe. "It is encouraging that an essential human rights instrument such as this Council of Europe convention can finally enter into force," says Torsten Moritz of the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe. Ekklesia
5. Publications and Resources:
Getting the message across: using media to reduce racial prejudice and discrimination - Communities and neighbourhoods - Communities and Local Government
The report presents findings based on a review of the literature on effective media communications to reduce racial prejudice and discrimination. It makes recommendations on promising practice in the design and evaluation of awareness campaigns. Home Office research
The Government’s Response to the Commission on Integration and Cohesion (PDF file)
Living Transnationally – Romanian migrants in London (PDF file)
Consolations:
Marriage Visas: Pre-Entry English Requirement For Spouses (PDF file), Responses in by 27 February 2008
Marriage to Partners from Overseas (PDF file), Responses in by 27 February 2008
Visitor Visas (PDF file), Responses in by 10 March 2008
Border and Immigration Agency: Code of practice - Keeping children safe from harm (PDF file), Responses in by 25 April 2008
Events:
Equalities Awareness Training
Training Course, SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations) 28 Feb 08 09:30,Location: British Medical Association, BMA Scotland, 14 Queen Street, Edinburgh, EH2 1LL
These sessions are designed to help project staff / volunteers / board members to become more aware of the key concepts of equality, gain an understanding of equalities legislation and the implications for the organisation. They will also help identify personal and organisational methods to implement equalities in practise.
Other Information:
Organiser: Cathie Rowell, 3rd Floor, Centrum Offices, 38 Queen Street, Glasgow, G1 3DX, Email: cathie.rowell@scvo.org.uk, Tel: 0141 225 8003
Embedding Equalities within your organisation
25 February 2008 in Kilmarnock (9.30 – 4.30)
17 March 2008 in Inverness (9.30 – 4.30)
20 March 2008 in Edinburgh (9.30 – 4.30)
28 March 2008 in Glasgow (9.30 – 4.30)
SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations) training for organizations who are looking to broaden their understanding of equalities issues and to those who are looking to incorporate equalities in to their everyday functions, including the design of services.
Further information contact Cathie Rowall 0141 225 8003, cathie.rowell@scvo.org.uk
Let’s improve Equal Opportunities in rural Scotland
26 February 2008 in Inverness (10.00 – 4.00)
SCVO conference to take stock of barriers to social inclusion and draw up a list of practical suggested improvements that will inform the future vision of the Equality & Human Rights Commission, the Scottish Government and Community Planning Partnerships.
Further information from Morag Redwood 01463258800, morag.redwood@scvo.org.uk
See SCVO events site for other training opportunities: www.scvo.org.uk
From the old country
I came to your door
having reluctantly overcome the embarrassment
of that first tentative note, that awkward call
carefully couched in neutral terms: to allow you a 'no'
and me to avoid the humiliation of rejection.
You invited me in
and in a few clumsy exchanges
the fear that divides humanity, the fear
of the stranger, the difference, the unknown
fell away before a certain magic of blood
and the illogical sense of fellowship inherited
across generations and continents.
Deep down one wants
to find a way to love the other.
We embraced
and found ourselves rejoicing
in our relatedness and a commonness
whose primitive fire chases the demons from the cave.
Stephen Eric Smyth