The white working class; Britain’s forgotten race victims?

[e19896]

As reported on {1}Snookcocker the {2}Runnymede Trust have released the findings of a new study on classism in the UK. The paper, entitled ‘Who Cares About The White Working Class?’, the report states…

The white working classes are discriminated against on a range of different fronts, including their accent, their style, the food they eat, the clothes they wear, the social spaces they frequent, the postcode of their homes, possibly even their names. But they are not discriminated against because they are white.

The real force behind this blatant prejudice is – and has always been – the UK’s open tolerance of rampant and institutionalised CLASSISM (in fact classism is so neglected that even your spellchecker will not recognise the word).

{3}The Barnsdale Brigade hail from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, which is officially one of the poorest areas in Europe. 80% of the children who attend our local school are from deprived backgrounds and a third of families are ‘breadline poor’ – a level of poverty that excludes people from participating in the ‘norms of society’. Local children are bright, happy and fitter than the UK average, but they still struggle in adulthood; one of the main reasons for children ‘failing’ in this area is the lack of aspirations instilled by parents and the wider community. This is not the fault of the parents; it is the legacy of classism.

At work, in school and especially in the media we’re bombarded with negative class stereotypes that most people would find truly shocking if the focus of attention were on race, sexuality or gender. Middle class kids indulge in ‘Chav Parties’, people who live in poverty are treated with unconcealed disdain and the BBC frequently reinforce class based stereotypes in their comedy, drama, arts and even documentary scheduling. It is this constant barrage of classism is ultimately responsible for the low levels of aspiration and self-belief that cripple social mobility in poorer areas – that and the fact that the middle class constantly rail-road attempts to address the issue by leeching off the schemes that were created to help poorer families.

Inspired by the work of U.S. based {4}‘Class Action‘, we are going to focus our attention on raising awareness and promoting positive action against classism. We want to mirror the work of Class Action in the UK, this would help raise class awareness, raise levels of aspiration in poor communities and fight against the institutionalised classism of schools, employers and the media. To these ends we would like to develop workshops, collate any relevant data and develop a UK website. We would also offer free/low-cost practical community education designed to help counter some of the problems that inequality and classism helps to create. We’re not planning to head down the charity route, but if anyone out there can help provide a postal address and/or office equipment (or money towards a PO Box and equipment) then we would, of course, be very grateful. Likewise anyone who wants to help get this idea off the ground please email us at [email protected]

{end notes}

{1}http://snookcocker.blogspot.com/

{2}http://www.runnymedetrust.org/

{3}http://barnsdale.wordpress.com/2009/01/24/action-against-classism/

{4}http://www.classism.org/

 

[editor]

Wrong forum. Moved.

 

[editor]

As reported on {1}Snookcocker

Inspiring source:

snook cocker

I thought I'd start a personal snook cocking blog after being inspired by the poxy tree hugging hippy jaunt, aka climate camp, that was populated by self worthy eco toff and middle class gap year mommy's little daft fuckers.

Oh, it's just a slab of cut and paste from the third link.

 

[e19896]

Inspiring source:
Oh, it's just a slab of cut and paste from the third link.

Not all just a slab as you say, there are links to where the info come from ie end notes..

 

[editor]

It would have been more useful and accurate to reference the original source of 'snook cocker's' one line post and not given the thread a misleading title.

Class blamed for bias against poor whites
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jan/22/class-bias-against-poor-whites

The white working class are discriminated against because of their accent, style, food, clothes, postcodes and even their names, but not because they are white, according to a Runnymede Trust study published today.

 

[butchersapron]

Full report availible here

It gets it spot on about that white season and other liberal racialising stuff we've seen over the last year or so:

Citing examples of the BBC's White Season and Channel 4's Immigration - the Inconvenient Truth, the study says: "The interests of the white working class are habitually pitched against those of minority ethnic groups and immigrants, while larger social and economic structures are left out of the debate altogether.

I did have high hopes that this report would actually represent an attack on the recent trend of racialising social statisitics and approaches that assume that the w/c is soley white and vive versa - that it would be highlighting the material commonalities across diff colours within the w/c, but after reading most of the report it doesn't really do that at all. If anything it goes along with and appluads thoese same assumptions - for instance the chapter on chavs identifies the problem as being a lack of identifiication by young w/c white people as a racial group -the same top down official multi-culturalism as before (i,e it does the same pitching against criticised above ). There's a large depressing gap between the reports full content and it's summary in the paper.

Summary:

"The white working classes are discriminated against on a range of different fronts, including their accent, their style, the food they eat, the clothes they wear, the social spaces they frequent, the postcode of their homes, possibly even their names. But they are not discriminated against because they are white,"

 

[e19896]

It would have been more useful and accurate to reference the original source of 'snook cocker's' one line post and not given the thread a misleading title.

Class blamed for bias against poor whites
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jan/22/class-bias-against-poor-whites

The tital comes from the report front page, and i have edited the post to link the source of the information and as the end notes are there given the source i see no real problem.

I have not read the report as yet and will do in time.

 

[Mr Moose]

There's a large depressing gap between the reports full content and it's summary in the paper.

Summary: "The white working classes are discriminated against on a range of different fronts, including their accent, their style, the food they eat, the clothes they wear, the social spaces they frequent, the postcode of their homes, possibly even their names. But they are not discriminated against because they are white,"

Interested, but not entirely getting your point Butchers, which might just be me.

Is your POV that the WWC are discriminated against because they are white?

I agree that recent focus does only tend to look at WWC in contrast with other WC groups. One flippin huge Elephant in the room.

 

[butchersapron]

That's a quote from the report's own summary. I agree with it, white w/c people are discriminated against largely of their class not their skin colour. I also think that summary is correct in it's follow up point arguing that

the focus on the whiteness of the white working class plays into cultural readings of inequality, which pitch their interests squarely against those of ethnic minorities, and simultaneously allows middle class commentators to blame the ‘underclass’ for their own misfortunes.

.

I think that the development of identity politics from the last 70s onward has played a very large part in the current dominance of such damaging (damaging because they're necessarily partial) culturalist readings of power and inequalities - happily this is now finally starting to be challenged from the left today with people like Kenan Malik asking some really interesting and importnat questions. There was even some real movement on this from the CRE before they changed it all up - the last few years woth of Catalyst (their mag) had some great provoking stuff.

I'd guess, having read most of this report, that it' still part of that ongoing battle, certain chapters seem to recognise the shortcoming of the culturalist approach (and the opening section certainly does) whilst other still seem mired in it. That's an interesting development in itself to my mind.

 

[isitme]

That's a quote from the report's own summary. I agree with it, white w/c people are discriminated against largely of their class not their skin colour. I also think that summary is correct in it's follow up point arguing that

.

I think that the development of identity politics from the last 70s onward has played a very large part in the current dominance of such damaging (damaging because they're necessarily partial) culturalist readings of power and inequalities - happily this is now finally starting to be challenged from the left today with people like Kenan Malik asking some really interesting and importnat questions. There was even some real movement on this from the CRE before they changed it all up - the last few years woth of Catalyst (their mag) had some great provoking stuff.

I'd guess, having read most of this report, that it' still part of that ongoing battle, certain chapters seem to recognise the shortcoming of the culturalist approach (and the opening section certainly does) whilst other still seem mired in it. That's an interesting development in itself to my mind.

Now this makes a lot sense to me, but the making a thing about it being the 'white working class' is obviously going to turn a lot of people off cos of the associations that has

re: identity politics tho, I think people take a lot of the good they did for granted now, even compared to when i was a kid in the 80s identity politics have done a shitload of good imo

i agree it needs to be challenged, like everything, but it is dodgy ground because like you said, it is still an ongoing battle (from all points of view)

 

[rioted]

highlighting the material commonalities across diff colours within the w/c

For years I've been trying to get school attaiment figures broken down by class and race. From my experience the figures are deliberately manipulated: I don't think that white w/c lads do any worse than black w/c lads, it's just that the figures don't exist on a national scale Why would the state consistently suppress that info?

 

[e19896]

erm

 

[brasicritique]

call me a cynic i think it is funny how all of a sudden now newshamebore will lose the next election that the white working class are now becoming more of a minor issue than they were before is this so newshamebore can re-connect with some of its old heartland before ditching them again to get elected in tens years time and while i for one welcome the report and think it is brave esp as it is so open to right wing manipulation

 

[FridgeMagnet]

Now this makes a lot sense to me, but the making a thing about it being the 'white working class' is obviously going to turn a lot of people off cos of the associations that has

re: identity politics tho, I think people take a lot of the good they did for granted now, even compared to when i was a kid in the 80s identity politics have done a shitload of good imo

i agree it needs to be challenged, like everything, but it is dodgy ground because like you said, it is still an ongoing battle (from all points of view)

It doesn't need to affect anti-racism at all: it's just that on the one hand some people can't look at groups without wanting to chop them up by race if there is a racial attitude to some aspects of discrimination, and on the other hand some people will take any opportunity to attack the entire concept of anti-racist action - the latter group being far larger and more influential IMO, but either way, they both affect how it is looked at.

Butchers' quote from the report

the focus on the whiteness of the white working class plays into cultural readings of inequality, which pitch their interests squarely against those of ethnic minorities

is spot on I would say. The focus means that instead of looking at common aspects, people split the w/c into distinct groups, with the underlying assumption of some sort of "zero sum discrimination policy" - if white people have bias against them, since we are all part of one group or another exclusively, that must mean that too many resources are going into anti-racism involving a different group.

I was listening to a radio 4 programme recently which illustrated this very well. It gave a lot of time to real people talking and was well-meaning, but it was obviously attempting to make out that the white w/c were a "forgotten group" amongst the black w/c, the asian w/c, whatever. And they had a lot of trouble with this, because in the interviews that they had with people, nobody was having it. They'd ask some kids whether they felt that they were discriminated against, treated like they were worthless, demonised, and they said "yeah". They'd ask them whether they thought it was because they were white and if they'd been black or asian it would have been different, and they said "no, it's the same for all of us really".

The whole emphasis was on differences between white and other groups rather than any commonality of experience. They'd ask what white people weren't doing that afro-caribbean people were, and assorted folk would sound a bit vague and try to say something about role models or whatever. And one person interviewed said very clearly that this was just being used as an excuse to attack anti-racism, as with the "zero sum" thing I mentioned above.

Threads with titles like "Britain's forgotten race victims?" do attract people who say "yeah why don't we have a white history month?" even if the answer is clearly "no" - but automatic and mandatory racialisation or other identity-politics grouping helps them just as much.

 

[isitme]

well yeah, butchers is cleverer than me, i was just chiming in

 

[treelover]

The Left has found a new proletariat now that the old one has left them down.

 

[shagnasty]

It seems to be trying to seperate out the ethnic origins of the working class.But isn't that what the bnp do trying to make out that ethnic groups etc get preferential treatment.it must always be a fear among the middle class that the w/c will rise against them

 

[marty21]

blah blah blah newshamebore...blah blah newshamebore

the name just won't catch on, it doesn't have the catchiness of tony bliar, give it up mate

 

[butchersapron]

It seems to be trying to seperate out the ethnic origins of the working class.But isn't that what the bnp do trying to make out that ethnic groups etc get preferential treatment.it must always be a fear among the middle class that the w/c will rise against them

Correct, this official multi-culturalist stuff is the terrain where the far right and elements of the liberal left meet.

 

[e19896]

The Left has found a new proletariat now that the old one has left them down.

Agreed and you should read the report as i did much of Sunday, going to re read this is where i find it hard i agree with some of the content, though it written by the middle class, as treelover has said The Left has found new proletariat now that the old one has left them down, in words we worked you out..

Of course the far right will use this, therefore it is up to us to counter this see

Antifa is a national federation comprised of local groups of militant anti-fascists, affiliated to the international Antifa movement. We exist to confront fascist ideas, activities and organisations wherever and however they occur. We utilise a wide range of tactics and believe it is important to confront fascism physically as well as ideologically. We do not advocate the electoral process as the means of defeating fascism nor will we work with groups that do. Our structure is anti-authoritarian and non hierarchical. We oppose discrimination based on race, gender, sexuality, disability or age. We will not work with, accept information from, nor pass information to the magazine Searchlight.

http://www.antifa.org.uk/

We do not organise the working class they organise themselves, neither do we condemn them for looking towards the far right for solutions, the British left have and always will fail them, as to some extent will the bourgeois lifestyle anarchist..

There is a lot to think about in this report, 25 years on from 1984 and

The miners' strike of 1984/1985 was a major industrial action affecting the British coal industry. It was a defining moment in British industrial relations, and its defeat significantly weakened the British trades union movement. It was also seen as a major political and ideological victory for Margaret Thatcher and the Conservative Party.

Of course Government is not going to act in the interest of the working class it is there for the middle class, neither are there British left going to act for the working class as they are white middle class, who have no real understanding of class the impact of class.

There is an underclass we need only remember Karen Matthews and her recent sentence http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article5573061.ece and the demonstration of all the working class from the media down.

 

[butchersapron]

Correct, this official multi-culturalist stuff is the terrain where the far right and elements of the liberal left meet.

...and just to emphasise this, who did the west mids politics show have on yesterday as representing the white w/c - yep, the BNP. (They did have a Stoke SP member on, but a) for 2 seconds and b) shown as being pretty much nothing to with the w/c, portrayed as the past, with the BNP the potential future)

 

[kyser_soze]

That's a quote from the report's own summary. I agree with it, white w/c people are discriminated against largely of their class not their skin colour. I also think that summary is correct in it's follow up point arguing that

.

I think that the development of identity politics from the last 70s onward has played a very large part in the current dominance of such damaging (damaging because they're necessarily partial) culturalist readings of power and inequalities - happily this is now finally starting to be challenged from the left today with people like Kenan Malik asking some really interesting and importnat questions. There was even some real movement on this from the CRE before they changed it all up - the last few years woth of Catalyst (their mag) had some great provoking stuff.

I'd guess, having read most of this report, that it' still part of that ongoing battle, certain chapters seem to recognise the shortcoming of the culturalist approach (and the opening section certainly does) whilst other still seem mired in it. That's an interesting development in itself to my mind.

^^This, altho it's not like there hasn't been the same discussion on here several times, wrt the issues that identity politics caused for the left, specifically successfully splitting the w/c into racial groups and pitting them against each other over the crumbs from trad w/c jobs and the welfare state.

IIRC that 'controversial' article in Prospect a few years ago made similar points to this report...

 

[glenquagmire]

Identity politics didn't itself split the w/c into racial groups and pit them against each other. The ruling class did that.

But the retreat into identity politics in recent decades from the likes of the eurocommunists and Socialist Action probably helped them.

 

[kyser_soze]

Identity politics didn't itself split the w/c into racial groups and pit them against each other. The ruling class did that.

I'd disgree with that. I'd say that the rise of identity politics was driven mainly by the professional, liberal middle class (whichever category you want to put them in), and was a result of resistance from the r/c to extending equal 'rights' or social recognition to ethnic groups, homosexuals etc etc; this change was partly driven from those sections of the w/c most affected as well.

 

[danny la rouge]

Correct, this official multi-culturalist stuff is the terrain where the far right and elements of the liberal left meet.

Indeed.

Not much to add to your posts further up the thread, but it is worth emphasising that point, and the summary:

"The white working classes are discriminated against on a range of different fronts, including their accent, their style, the food they eat, the clothes they wear, the social spaces they frequent, the postcode of their homes, possibly even their names. But they are not discriminated against because they are white,"

 

[danny la rouge]

I'd disgree with that. I'd say that the rise of identity politics was driven mainly by the professional, liberal middle class (whichever category you want to put them in),

But remember that consent for the ruling hegemony is constructed by that class, through the structures of the institutions - education, the media, the churches, the law - which form the ramparts of capitalist society.

 

[N_igma]

Race is class!

 

[DotCommunist]

Race is class!

Religion is class

 

[kyser_soze]

My point, such as it is, was that the r/c needed to do very little to allow that particular little bubble to expand for it to gain a new wedge in the w/c; and it was one perpatuated by those seeking to 'do good'. Rather gives the truth of the phrase 'A good thing done for the wrong reasons will always end up bad'. Well, right thing (fight for equal rights for minority groups), done for wrong reasons (to raise individual self-identifying groups rather than the whole class)...

 

[e19896]

The working class is disappearing Class does not exist in America Define working class We’re all really working class because we all work My grandparents were working class Can anybody cite statistics to show that a working class exists in late capitalist America? You wear your working class background like a badge of honor Unions are obsolete I read in the paper about a janitor who makes $50,000 a year - can you believe that? White working class people are racist, homophobic and sexist But you don’t look poor Why are you so angry? The men who work for my dad’s construction company are all cheerful, happy guys You’re just being divisive I saw a woman in the grocery store buying lobster with food stamps I know you understand this, but you’re different - most working class people won’t get it Working class people don’t read You have a chip on your shoulder Lighten up - white trash is hip You’re too smart to be working class Once you get a college degree you’re no longer working class Nobody who lives in the suburbs is working class You’re not working class because you make too much money You’re not working class because you’re not a manual laborer You’re not working class because you’re on the Internet and working class people can’t afford Internet access because they don’t have enough money …Why are you so angry?

The following was lifted from Payday, an American site , but British Class Activists will find it all too familiar…