Stop calling me brown

The rioting over the last couple of weeks have forced issues of race and racism on the political and media agenda, again. And I have once again been struck by how language has impacted on the discussions.

Language can be tricky and be a huge barrier when it comes to having conversations about race and racism. People are worried about “getting it wrong” or “causing offence”. So, they avoid talking about it altogether or use euphemisms and impenetrable jargon.

The discomfort has spawned some very clumsy terms. Enter BAME – Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic - a uniquely British grammatical contortion which I loathe. In the last few years, we have seen the rise of the expression “People of Colour” a term of US origin which seeks to acknowledge the common experience of all non-white people. Also, from the USA we have BICOP – Black, Indigenous and People of Colour which is relevant in the Americas and Australia and New Zealand but makes less sense in Europe. And in the last couple of years, I have heard increasing reference to “Black and Brown” people which I think seeks to bring together people of African and Caribbean heritage with people of Asian, and in the US context Hispanic, origin.

To me, all of this terminology is fundamentally flawed. None acknowledge the politics of race. We need language to bring together the common historical experiences of slavery, colonialism, occupation and oppression and how they impact on the racism and injustice that the descendants of those people experience today. ?We need a word and since the 1960s and the birth of the black consciousness movement that word is “black”.

“Black” is not about the actual colour of a person’s skin, no one is actually black, just as no one is actually white. (If you look at my skin, I am actually multiple colours – from a pale yellow to burnt umber which all go many shades darker as soon as I am exposed to the sun.) Black signifies someone whose heritage has been negatively impacted by the past. It is because of this, because of politics, that Black people in Britain today face institutional and structural barriers in every aspect of life: education and health, access to finance and employment, in access to justice (both as victims and defendants) as well as the in your face, day to day racism which has been so exposed over the last couple of weeks. ?

?In this context, the opposite of “black” is “white”. It doesn’t mean that all white people have an easy life. But it does mean that in Britain white people do not find themselves facing those same institutional and structural barriers because they are white.

If we want to address racism in all its forms, it does not help to create sub-divisions within that “black” population. Divide and conquer has been an age-old trick so why do those of us who want to change things continue to fall for it? And let’s be clear those who seek to divide us don’t really see any difference between us, but they do believe we are easier to “manage” if we are not The rioters didn’t seem to differentiate between ethnic groups when they were setting fire to refugee hostels and mosques. It was communities coming together which helped to stop their violence. ??

Creating a divide between “black” and “brown” people is not helpful. There isn’t a hierarchy of the oppressed. Each of our individual experiences are different and are affected by other factors like our sex and socio-economic group, but whether you are of African, Caribbean, Asian or indeed mixed heritage we have all experienced racism, even those who think they haven’t. We all have an interest in changing things for the better. We need to recognise our common interest and come together to tackle racism. We also need to remember together we are the global majority.?

Of course there are times when you do need to talk about specific ethnicity or heritage but please don’t mix political terms with geographical ones – we don’t talk about White and European so let’s not talk about Black and Asian.

For what it is worth, I proudly describe myself as Black, as South African, as a South African of Indian origin, global majority, as British, as a Londoner all depending on the context.