Racism in Ireland | Let's Not Lose More Lives to Mindless Hatred - HeadStuff

16.4.16

Racism in Ireland | Let's Not Lose More Lives to Mindless Hatred - HeadStuff: In a survey taken by NASC, 82.8% of people who had experienced racism and discrimination said they did not report the incident. Almost half of these people believed that nothing would happen if they did. Upon asking Kevin why this was, he said that “They have come to accept it, which is a terrible position to be in. You have to grow this hard skin and just accept it.” Should we tell someone who has just been mugged or beaten up to accept it? Should we tell them to toughen up? Of course not. So why do we do that here?

After speaking with Kevin, I went on to interview some foreign members of the public. That was when I met Elina Temiraeve, a twenty year old student from Russia. She told me stories from her childhood and about how she was exposed to most of the racism in her life when she was younger. “When I was younger, the term ‘paki’ was so commonly used by the kids, it was almost as if it was cool to call someone that.” She was a perfect example of someone who was forced to ‘toughen up’ in the face of a racist environment.