Scottish Racism has Not Gone Away

At least a quarter of those surveyed said they feel discrimination in Scotland has become more prevalent. 

Of those who have experienced prejudice, 25% felt it had happened when applying for a job, 18% said it had affected promotion chances, and another 18% believed it impacted attempts to seek equal pay. 

More than one third - 35% - reported experiencing discrimination while using transport services and 20% when accessing healthcare. 

A significant majority - 89% - felt this was because of their perceived ethnicity, while 66% felt it was also based on their perceived religion.

Some 37% with a black African Caribbean heritage said they have experienced prejudice in Scotland in the past two years, compared with 35% of those of Asian heritage, and 24% for mixed heritage respondents. 

Instances of prejudice may include name-calling, the use of inappropriate language, incidents on public transport and prejudice in the workplace. Discrimination at work could include unfair assumptions about an employee's ability in relation to promotion, or employers not wanting a particular racial profile to become the public face of an organisation. 

Lead researcher Professor Nasar Meer, of the University of Edinburgh's School of Social and Political Science, said: "This survey builds on others in previous years and points to a persistent trend of racial discrimination of black and ethnic minority Scots.” 

Ending racism will take much more than moral appeals to people's tolerance or the passing of anti-discrimination laws. Such approaches leave untouched the root causes of racial division. Recent events has shown how vulnerable and temporary reforms are regards equality are under capitalism. The underlying forces of the profit system, which make poverty, urban decay and unemployment permanent problems, continually overwhelm patchwork efforts to improve the status of minorities within the working class. The concept of "inferior" and "superior" races that had been fostered by capitalists has persisted. It will take the successful outcome of yet another struggle -- the class struggle -- before workers of all backgrounds will have the power to collectively enforce their claim to justice for all.