CHE Home Page Who's a Real Scot? Report Action Points for MSPs

Racism and the exclusion of black and ethnic minority people from the democratic process is a complex issue rooted in colonial history. Devolution offers Scotland an opportunity to come to terms with this past and advance social transformation. The following recommendations have come about from rigorous discernment based on EMS participants' discussions about identity, belonging, and participation in our democracy:

Identity affects participation in society and therefore the expression of full humanity. If an individual's identity is not respected, their sense of belonging is diminished and democracy itself suffers. Accordingly:

i. MSPs should be aware of the ways in which democratic process can shape an inclusive Scottish identity.

MSPs should therefore consider the effects of legislation in building an inclusive sense of Scottish identity that honours the full diversity of the "Community of the Realm." Scotland's parliament will affect the evolution of identity, so it is crucial to honour what Scottish identity most deeply means - particularly its renowned internationalism - by ensuring that representations of identity are inclusive rather than exclusive.

ii. Integrate the development of an inclusive Scottish identity as a criterion of sustainability in all new legislation.

The CSG recommends that all legislation is assessed in terms of "sustainable development." Sustainable development concerns both the environment and people equally. MSPs are therefore urged to consider exercising this recommendation by establishing a Multi-ethnic Identity Unit within existing frameworks for addressing sustainable development. Such a unit would give a black and ethnic voice in the Parliament.

Racism continues to impede the development of the Scottish economy. Present economic structures tend to marginalise and exploit people, thereby feeding back into racism. MSPs and other decision makers can help to redress this.

i. Set equal opportunities legislation to work.

Scottish employers are not capitalising on Scotland's 'human capital' through continued ignorance of and failure to abide by equal opportunities legislation. The overwhelming grass-roots call is for this legislation to be made effective through employers' - and employees' - anti-racist education, effective monitoring and, where appropriate, policing of the legislation. The Commission for Racial Equality should be central in this process, detailing training guidelines within their year plan (see The CRE's 'Racial Equality Matters ­ An agenda for The Scottish Parliament,' 1999).

ii. Promote fair trade.

Scottish MSPs can reinforce understanding of the links between equal opportunities at home, and fair trade abroad. Much of Scotland's trade with countries in the 'South' promotes inequality by unsustainably exploiting labour and the environment. Such exploitation needs to be recognised as a form of racism. Only fair trade offers an opportunity for the Scottish economy to accord with our Government's obligations as a signatory of the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. This states that, "to achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for all people, States should reduce and eliminate unsustainable patterns of production and consumption" (Principle no. 8).

Overcoming racism will involve a deep process of education for transformation at different levels of Scottish society. Schools and further education must play a key role in this.

i. Education for transformation: Self respect, including respect for Scottish cultures, goes hand in hand with learning respect for others.

Consistent with work already touched upon by the government's curriculum review body, SCCC, the school curriculum and further education teaching should integrate:

• The history of black and ethnic minorities in Scotland, including knowledge of the different religions present in Scotland.
• Colonial history as it has affected the Scottish psyche both internally and internationally.
• The values and mythology of Scottish internationalism, recognising that racism is a projection of insecure self-esteem, but that self-respect develops alongside the capacity to respect others.

ii. Teacher training should include in-depth knowledge of racism and of the social psychology of prejudice.

Teachers must acquire an in-depth knowledge of racism based on the above recommendations, with the added dimension of a knowledge of the social psychology of prejudice such as scapegoating and stereotyping. In addition, schools must review their effectiveness at recruiting and retaining staff from black and minority ethnic communities.

i. Training in racism awareness that includes the psychological and social structures of racism.

Research shows that the most effective way of breaking down prejudice is for differing groups of people to experience positively constructed face-to-face contacts. It has been said that "a demading common task is what builds community."

This training should include experiential elements, and must answer the question 'Why is racism globalised, institutionalised, and internalised?'' Models might include those used by some members of Glasgow's Iona Community with, for example, white police in South Africa.

ii. Parliament should investigate evidence that the dynamics of racial prejudice can also affect English people in Scotland despite the differences of history and power.

There is evidence, not explored in this report but implicit in its forerunner (People & Parliament), that the same dynamics of prejudice, stereotyping and scapegoating that arise for black and ethnic minority groups in Scotland can also affect English people, despite the great differences of history and power relations. We recommend that the Parliament acknowledges and considers investigating this area.

A fully participative and representative democracy will affirm an inclusive Scottish identity, therefore:

i. Political parties must implement their own policies on an inclusive Scotland.

Decision-makers and political parties can encourage greater black and ethnic minority participation in politics by adapting and implementing strategies that have been effective with other marginalised groups (e.g. women, disabled and economically disadvantaged people).

ii. MSPs should train in participative inquiry methods.

Burns' lament, "And alas! I am weary, weary, O!" echoes EMS participants' tiredness at taking part in consultation exercises that seem to lead nowhere. Participative inquiry is a radically different approach to 'consultation' than the 'top-down' exercises that EMS participants have wearied of. As this report might suggest, it has the capacity to acknowledge that the pain of racism experienced by black and ethnic minorities in Scotland is profoundly cultural as well as personal. Participative inquiry methodologies, such as group discernment processes, like that developed for People & Parliament and EMS, should be understood and harnessed by the Parliament and public agencies when developing consultation strategies. They involve a greater willingness to share power, thereby allowing democracy to be more than merely representative. This gives life thereby liberating from apathy.