What is Institutional Racism?
Volume 24
30 January 2024
By Joana Pedro
What is institutional racism and where did the idea emerge?
Institutional racism is a form of racism found in the culture, policies and procedures of institutional environments. This form of racism is exhibited in areas such as the criminal justice system, public health, education, employment, housing, and political representation.
The term 'institutional racism' was first publicly used in the book Black Power: The Politics of Liberation by civil rights activists Stokely Carmichael and Charles V. Hamilton. They claimed that institutional racism receives "far less public condemnation", as it takes place within authoritative and respected institutions.
In the UK, however, the efforts of Sir William Macpherson – a white, High Court judge – drew attention to this issue. More than four years after Stephen Lawrence was murdered in 1993, the establishment of an inquiry into his death was announced. The Macpherson Report (1999) concluded that the Metropolitan police were institutionally racist, as they failed to provide a duty of care to certain groups in society due to their race, culture and ethnicity. This finding allowed the idea of institutional racism to explicitly enter social consciousness, and although much has been done to combat this issue, traces of institutional racism still remain to this day.
Is there evidence of institutional racism in the criminal justice system?
Unfortunately, a common stereotype associated with black men is that they are drug dealers and convicts involved in criminal activity. This damaging perception of black men as 'thugs' has infiltrated Hollywood, and often, little empathy or social context is given as to why black men more than other groups are more likely to end up in prison.
Therefore, policies such as stop and search and racial profiling make black men targets in both the USA and UK. In America, 65% of black adults have said that they have been in situations where people acted as if they were suspicious of them because of their race, whilst only 25% of white adults said this happened to them. In England and Wales, it is estimated that between 2018 and 2019, black people specifically were 9.5 times more likely to be stopped and searched. In fact, stop and searches are not spread evenly across England and Wales, and the rate at which black people are more likely to be questioned and arrested by police remains significantly higher than any other group. For example, black people made up 80% of all searches by the Metropolitan Police in 2020 and are three times more likely to be arrested than white people.
Is there evidence of institutional racism in healthcare?
Recent figures demonstrate that black women in the UK are four times more likely to die during pregnancy or the postnatal period. This may be attributed to an unconscious racial bias which perpetuates the stereotype that black women have thicker skin and can take more pain. As a result, healthcare professionals can diagnose pregnancy complications relatively late, deny pain relief and be dismissive of the pain black women experience.
Whilst some health care leaders stand by the 'colourblind' ideology (that all patients are cared for equally because we all "bleed the same colour"), the overarching theme amongst a large majority of pregnant black women is the inadequate use of care they receive in comparison to white women. Although the NHS "acknowledge" and "regret this disparity", there are "no specific targets set to reduce the disproportionate rates".
Is there evidence of institutional racism in education?
The Equality Act of 2010 outlawed racial discrimination. However, various problems still remain as the Act failed to explicitly reference hair. This has created a 'grey area' and some schools have formed uneven and discriminatory policies.
For example, Ruby Williams was sent home in 2016 for allegedly breaching school uniform policy as the school stated that "afro hair must be of a reasonable size and length." They argued that her hair distracted students and hindered the view of the whiteboard. As a result, Ruby began showing signs of depression and the school received letters from her GP and a clinical psychologist alerting them of her declining state. In fact, Jon Holbrook, a former senior barrister, posted this tweet, “the Equality Act undermines school discipline by empowering the stroppy teenager of colour.” He was later expelled from his position and faced backlash from lawyers on social media. Ruby tried different hairstyles which were deemed appropriate by the school uniform policy, but such hairstyles were always costly, time consuming and risked damaging Ruby's naturally curly hair. She told the BBC, "am I really being sent home because my hair is growing out of my head the way it is?"
Category: Modern