Banter: The British Are Not Racist, They Are Just Culturally Different?
Here’s why:
I have decided not to use the phrase “white people” in this context, as it can be off-putting to readers. At the time of writing, I also had it at the back of my mind that black people can be British.
So before you start baying for my blood, I would establish the fact that this blog post is not to absolve racists or justify racism in Britain. It is only to express my experience so far on the nuanced issue of racism in Britain and how, banter, a fragment of the British culture, could be easily misinterpreted to be a microaggression.
The British are not racist, they are just culturally different and banter is one of the many examples of how.
As of now, I’ve lost count of the numerous ways to be racist. I sympathize with those most affected by this arduous work of staying abreast of the new ways of “how not to be racist”.
As a black person in the United Kingdom, I have mostly and mainly experienced one of the innumerable ways racism manifests itself as prescribed by “experts” (it’s mostly by non-black or non-colored individuals) on Twitter, which is — microaggression. But is microaggression a type of racism or is it just a misnomer for culturally different?
Keep on reading to find out……
I have noticed that when most black people, who feel genuinely hurt by their experience of racism, are asked to give an account of how they have been victims of racism, in America, they usually go back 10 years, 20 years, or even 60 years when racism was still fairly overt to explain why they felt they have been victims of racism an hour ago. But just like America, the answer that is usually afforded in Britain is “it was subtle…”, and I am a perfect example of this innocent absurdity. I will tell you why.
Banter: the culture of British banter can be so elusive it could be easily misconstrued to mean microaggression.
For example…..
I had clocked into work – as you do – on a dreadfully cold winter morning and proceeded to get my scanner in order to get ready for work. At the charging point sat both my team leaders who were chipping away at the backlog of work and minding their business, not until I piped up by saying “good morning, it’s freezing out there”.
One of the male team leaders who every minority worker suspects to be “racist”, by the way, retorted “it’s not cold, it’s only because you’re African and you have only been in this country for a short while”. Immediately, both team leaders got cackling hard and I promptly got befuddled by their responses, mainly because he made a reference to my ethnicity in such an aggressive and dismissive way. I responded, stammering, and cowered “no, it is because it’s three degrees outside”. He responded in an apathetic way saying “you’re African and have been probably residing here for two years”, as though you have to have white skin as a legitimate reason to complain of the cold. As I was about to address his ignorance, his colleague interjected by saying “alright guys, let's get back to work”.
Both team leaders, who if had gone viral, would be instantaneously labeled racists, were completely unaware of the damage they had done to my feelings. But apparently, it was a British thing to “playfully humiliate” friends and colleagues I suppose, by the virtue of banter.
I got really destabilized because I had not had the chance to respond. But after a few hesitations later and a few negative scenarios playing in my head, I garnered enough courage to confront him. Hoping that he would respond with a cavalier attitude and harangue me on having a sense of humor — possibly dismiss me.
However, his response was quite surprising. His immediate response was that of embarrassment as he did not think I would be remotely affected. He was just joking and was ready to learn.
My point…..
In Britain, there is a colossal cultural gulf between ethnicities. Certain comments, gestures, demeanor, and, crucially, cultural practices can be construed differently among incumbent ethnicities in Britain.
The ethnic demographic makeup of the UK is: white 87.2%, black/African/Caribbean/black British 3%, Asian/Asian British: Indian 2.3%, Asian/Asian British: Pakistani 1.9%, mixed 2%, other 3.7% (2011 est.)
I think rather than conveniently resorting to instinctively accuse one of microaggression, there needs to be more confrontations and learning to do on the recipient's side.
Recommendations….
The statistics above logically suggests that the predominant ethnic group dictates what the mainstream social culture would be, one which the remaining minor ethnic groups should learn and align with in order to seamlessly integrate and harmoniously coexist.
For the predominant ethnic group in Britain, there needs to be learning taking place on their side in order to be more sensitive and tactful in their speech — not asking you to be less British, just be more sensitive and aware, pretty please.
Conclusion…..
I have experienced microaggression and every time I do it is usually in the guise of banter. But you can look at it from two angles: cultural difference or racism. To confirm, I’d implore you to confront or learn before choosing racism.
