Children as young as three should be reported for 'racism', Go

[Clawg]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10...oup-claims.html

http://www.ncb.org.uk/Page.asp?originx_598...6r_20086274937s

Isn't this turning reality upside-down? Children first have to learn superficial differences and THEN discover that there is more to man than appearance. Or am I wrong on this? Isn't the defeat of racism only possible if you have first recognized that people look differently, have different tastes etc. but then discovered that they share a common property, i.e. rationality? Isn't 'learning' racism a necessary step in order to learn that racism is wrong?

Isn't it like showing you a number of colored balls and then punishing you if you categorize them by their color because you lack the understanding of other properties of the balls?

Mmmh... I'm not quite sure, it probably depends on the age and development of the child. For a child that hasn't yet recognized the rational faculty of other children this way of teaching against racism might be harmful.

What do you think?

[DragonMaci]

Saying foreign food is "yuck" and seeing people look different isn't racism. It is recognizing reality, which is that the chemicals in the food reacts negatively with your taste buds and the people look different.

[eriatarka]

It seems reasonable to try and combat racist beliefs in children, the problem is that their defintion of racism is absurdly broad ('saying yuk to foreign foods') and their system of punishment ('taking children to court for using racial slurs') is draconian.

Having said that, its a Daily Mail article so I'm reluctant to believe children are actually being labelled racist for disliking foreign foods unless theres a better source confirming it. The name of that newspaper is synonymous with reactionary scaremongering in the UK. The same applies to their case study - its possible that there were more facts there than the paper is reporting.

edit: notice that there no direct quotes from the guide cited in that article, except

'Some people think that if a large number of racist incidents are reported, this will reflect badly on the institution,' it said. 'In fact, the opposite is the case.'

and

'racist incidents among children in early years settings-tend to be around name-calling-casual thoughtless comments, and peer group relationships'.,

neither of which are inherently unreasonable.

I'd like to know what the guide actually said, in context.

Edited July 8, 2008 by eriatarka

[DragonMaci]

Having said that, its a Daily Mail article so I'm reluctant to believe children are actually being labelled racist for disliking foreign foods unless theres a better source confirming it.

I don't know about their credibility, but is the UK Telegraph a better source in your opinion? Because K-Mac linked to an article about it by them earlier in chat.

I'd like to know what the guide actually said, in context.

What I'd like is for the government not to issue books on such at all, especially not such large ones! You don't need such a large book to address childhood racism.

Edited July 8, 2008 by DragonMaci

[DragonMaci]

Having said that, its a Daily Mail article so I'm reluctant to believe children are actually being labelled racist for disliking foreign foods unless theres a better source confirming it. The name of that newspaper is synonymous with reactionary scaremongering in the UK. The same applies to their case study - its possible that there were more facts there than the paper is reporting.

Also, the daily Mail is only one of two sources the original poster in the forum provided. The other is NCB. I don't know about them, but they were provided as a source.

Furthermore I would not put it past that British government to do such a thing.

Edit: Added a comment.

Edited July 8, 2008 by DragonMaci

[eriatarka]

I don't know about their credibility, but is the UK Telegraph a better source in your opinion? Because K-Mac linked to an article about it by them earlier in chat.

The Telegraph is a reputable paper but its still the same article that doesnt have direct quotes from the book.

What I'd like is for the government not to issue books on such at all, especially not such large ones! You don't need such a large book to address childhood racism.

I dont think NCB is a government organization, its a charity.

Edited July 8, 2008 by eriatarka

[DragonMaci]

The Telegraph is a reputable paper but its still the same article that doesn't have direct quotes from the book.

That doesn't make the story unbelievable.

I dont think NCB is a government organization, its a charity.

I still find it quite believable given the crazy beliefs a lot of people have, especially regarding what constitutes racism

[Clawg]

@eriatarka:

Well, I think the NCB is some sort of lobby group or NGO, in addition it receives funding from tax-payers.

NCB has expertise in all issues affecting today's children and young people. Through our membership network and strong partnerships in government, academia and the children's sector, we play a vital role in maintaining a policy environment that is open to innovation and new ways of working.

As part of NCB's clear commitment to partnership working across the sector, we also host a number of semi-independent organisations that focus on a single issue or a single client group.

NCB has adopted and works within the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

NCB works in partnership with Children in Scotland and Children in Wales.

http://www.playengland.org.uk/Page.asp?ori...63q92l462981289

Interestingly, from the same organisation, the "anti-bullying alliance" comes to a different conclusion (not much text there, so there is room for interpretation, I haven't done much research on this subject) :

"The anti-bullying award was for the project or initiative that has done the most to reduce bullying and the harm that it causes. The ARK project uses dance, music, drama and poetry as creative weapons to tackle racial harassment and bullying. The project works with young people in schools, youth centres and through detached youth work. Critically, it does not take a “zero-tolerance” approach to racism. ARK’s philosophy is that young people need to be able to express their views freely if racist opinions are to be challenged effectively.

The project was developed to tackle increasing racial harassment and tension amongst young people in areas of North and South Kirklees. Youth workers go into schools and help pupils explore issues around racism, prejudice, stereotyping, bullying and intimidation through arts projects. Young people involved in the project develop a drama based on a victim and perpetrator of bullying and perform the drama back to the whole school. "

http://www.anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk/Pa...61j_2007123481q