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In the British Social Attitudes Survey, 30% of the population said that they have "some level of racial prejudice". Given the stigma of those beliefs, I expect
by jdietrich 10y ago
In the British Social Attitudes Survey, 30% of the population said that they have "some level of racial prejudice". Given the stigma of those beliefs, I expect the real number could be significantly higher.
Attributing Brexit solely to racism and xenophobia is clearly unreasonable, but it is equally unreasonable to dismiss it entirely as a factor. There are some striking demographic correlations between Leave voters and people who admitted to being racially prejudiced.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/27/-sp-racism-on-rise-in-britain https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/27/-sp-racism-o...
- tremon 10y agoThere are some striking demographic correlations between Leave voters and people who admitted to being racially prejudiced. I think self-assessments on negative habits are wrought with problems, I wouldn't rely on those for anything. But your comment made me realize something else: if people identify problems that you recognize, and you then see those people vilified as racists, you may start to question your beliefs. But the second and third time this happens, you may start to question the label itself. I'm not happy with the above phrasing, so I apologize for my runaway train of thought. But I think people are happy to self-assess as racists because they identify with demonized politicians, not necessarily because they are aware of their own racism. It becomes a badge of honour, so to speak.
- wyclif 10y agoThere's a rather wide chasm, though, between "some level of racial prejudice" and the fantastical "52% of the UK is racist." The first is plausible, the second is not.