Almost half of British young people consider their country racist, poll shows
Almost half of Brits aged 18 to 27 consider their country racist and would not defend it should the need arise. That is the finding of a poll by Public First and YouGov, reported on by The Times.
The study shows a fundamental decline in trust in the British state compared to older generations. Just 41 % of young people are proud to be British and a mere 15 % believe their country is united.
That corresponds to the fact that 48 % of those surveyed believe their country is racist. The opposite opinion is held by just 36 % of British young people, while the rest said that they did not have an answer to the question “Would you say Britain is a racist country?”
Exactly half of the respondents said they believe Britain is stuck in the past and 41 % said they would never fight in a war for it under any circumstances. That is a big difference compared to the last survey published by The Times in 2004, which found 80 % of 20-somethings were proud to be British and considered their homeland to be progressive and tolerant.
“Why would I aid Britain when she does not assist me and does her best to get rid of me half the time? That’s how it seems to me sometimes,” a 23-year-old journalism student and model named Summer Nesbeth, whose family comes from India and Jamaica, told The Times.
Nesbeth has experienced situations in Britain which, in her view, exhibited elements of a racism that is systemic in nature. “Security guards in shops have searched me several times to see whether I had stolen something. This also happens to my father, who is a tall Black man. A boy at school told me he would never go out with me because I’m not white,” she said.
Uthman Odusote (22), who works for the London-based nonprofit organization Fight 4 Change, was surprised himself that just half of those surveyed believe Britain is a racist country. He then said he believes racism in Britain today is more hidden and therefore not as apparent.
“They are pessimistic because they have grown up in a multicultural society and they believe in genuine equality. They are, therefore, less indulgent on the issue of racial discrimination,” said the director of the British Future think-tank, Sunder Katwala.
According to Katwala, British young people have not personally experienced any kind of “enormous progress” on equality. However, it doesn’t much help to tell them that “they’re better off than their grandparents”, he said.
What you need to know:
Almost half of British young people (aged 18–27) consider their country racist, while just 36 % disagree with that opinion.
Faith in the British state is declining – just 41 % of young people are proud of their nationality, a significant decline compared to 2004 (when 80 % said they were proud to be British).
Many said they would not defend Britain in case of need – 41 % said they would not fight for their country in a war.
According to experts, young people perceive racism less tolerantly today and expect genuine equality, which forms their critical perspective on society.
