I learnt from the radio programme that many people are still are unsure what their identity is, it seemed like even though they were raised or born in England they still may have said they were from another country because of their parents nationality. Someone in the extract stated “I don’t want to put myself in a box because of the colour of my skin”. I agree with this statement because we judge people based on the colour of their skin before we know their background. There were things mentioned that were associated with being ‘Black British’, for example, chicken, rice, hip hop, rnb, ghetto, urban, reggae and their language. Also their ‘fashion’ was talked about. There was a black style that was about how black people in Britain had helped to shape their identity by using ‘Black’ clothes.
During the Windrush years when black people started to come over to England they believed that they were going to be welcomed over to their ‘Motherland’ but found that their reception was less than friendly. Britain used to have a huge empire even though those countries have gained their own independence; there are still close links which leads to mass immigration to the UK. During the middle of the 20th century those people from other countries wanted to come over to Britain as an opportunity and to help with the labour demands as Britain had had many casualties after the Second World War. When the immigrants came over they expected there to be a better quality of life but they found they were living in crowded accommodation as other accommodation wasn’t available to West Indians. Back then black people weren’t allowed into certain venues so they found other ways of entertaining themselves and socialising even though black people were “few and far between”; it was the beginning of a Black British culture. West Indians would always try to be involved wherever there was music, they were good dancers and they became central attractions and found a small place in the community.
‘Jamaican Patois’ or ‘patwa’ was and is a popular symbol of black identity, it’s a dialect and shows how they would talk to one another, many people changed the way they spoke to sound more British. Black British can be defined as who you are, your nationality, and your parent’s background. Many Black British learned the British culture but at the same time they didn’t want to lose their own individuality. “Garms” is a shortened version for ‘garments’. Even though there was a resistance towards the Black people who wanted to keep their pride and individuality, they wore their clothes as a way of saying the white people that they were here to stay and they should get over it.
The second/new generation, those born in the UK, brought a new way of living. Whereas the first generation’s roots were mainly with their home country, this generation were beginning to mix the two together – they wanted to mix with all the other cultures. In tandem there was a need to be fashionable, to be part of the 60s revolution, the Jackson 5, a lot of young people were conscious of the politics. British culture was influenced by the clothes worn by the black culture. Those who mixed their cultures were proud to say they were black and British. Many black hip hop artists are mixing their culture references, for example, 50 cent and Jay-Z. Many think that their culture and style has crossed the race line and has just become ‘style’. However, some people are worried that original references aren’t acknowledged.
In 2003, Channel 4 showed a documentary called “Black like Beckham”. It stated that Beckham was not only the black community’s greatest icon; he was also Britain’s most famous black man because of his lifestyle. Those who borrow from black culture are often accused of ‘acting black’ (talking with the slang, walking with the bop, the attitude). ‘Black’ has been associated with being naturally loud, being rude, wearing big earrings, being all loud, angry/aggressive, these are all stereotypical things and clearly they are not all like that.
There are still gaps in the racial lines. Recent government stats show that more white defendants were found guilty than black defendants in 81% of the crown court cases. But more black offenders were sent to prison. In terms of education, latest figures show that black boys are underachieving in comparison to their white counterparts. People have associated Black British with things such as gang members, drug dealers and those people that hang round on the street. Young Black people find that people judge you by your colour not by your character. There are negative views in the media towards black people which doesn’t help with racial stereotypes and prejudices.
One black youth said: “It’s got nothing to do with the colour of our skin how well we do in school; it’s got to do with the fact that gun crime, drugs and alienation are all symptoms of poverty. Young black people feel alienated because there is a lack of positive stereotypes, there is a lack of positive representation in media. They are constantly hitting a barrier, constantly seeing themselves demonised. They begin to believe the negative stereotypes because of their skin.”
Weak people will be influenced by anything. Music has been criticised for having a bad influence. It shouldn’t be called black music because everyone listens to it. The more there is a divide between what we call black and what we call white the longer the divide between the two races leading to more racial tensions.
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