Workplace discrimination faced by ethnic minorities convinces the public of racism | Discrimination at work

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Researchers think they may have found the best way to convince the public that racism is a real problem and needs major change: tell them about a study from the University of Oxford exposing the discrimination job applicants face.

A groundbreaking project exploring how to better build public support for action against systemic racism tested which messages best moved people to a more anti-racist stance.

Reframing Race, a charity, tested dozens of arguments on nearly 20,000 people and found research from 2019 showing that ethnic minority applicants received less positive responses to job applications than white people, was the blockbuster in terms of making people more likely to agree that all races and ethnic groups are equally capable.

In contrast, using well-rehearsed language about people suffering from inequality was less likely to convince people of the systemic problem and even sometimes backfired.

The need for better arguments was clearly highlighted by a survey for the study covering England and Scotland, which revealed widespread racist attitudes, with 40% of people believing that certain races or ethnic groups naturally work harder than others and one in five people think some races are smarter than others.

The research also showed that it remains easier to get the public to accept racism as a real and pressing problem than to get them to support particular solutions.

If we are to end racism and entrench anti-racism, it is essential to generate public demand for deep and irreversible progress, said Sanjiv Lingayah, author of the report and director of Reframing Race. [This] shows that there is still a long way to go. The data shows a significant attachment to deeply held and debunked myths about race. More positively, the results show that the public can understand systemic racism and can be rallied around far-reaching anti-racist solutions.

The researchers found that the message with the most potential was when people in England were told that Oxford University researchers had applied for over 3,000 jobs on behalf of fictitious candidates, randomly varying ethnicity, but keeping the same skills, qualifications and work experience. White British applicants had to make four applications to get a hit, while ethnic minority applicants had to make seven.

This is almost watertight evidence that hiring racism exists, the authors said. The experiment catches racism in the act. Naming the University of Oxford gives the results extra credence. And, what’s more, the way the fake resume sting is portrayed gives the post the feel of a compelling story with a plot, characters, and a powerful ending.

Other effective messages were informing people of much worse maternal mortality rates for black women than those faced by white women and even using a metaphor to describe racism as a birdcage that traps people, everything it reinforced public acceptance of racism as a problem.

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An example of a message that made people less likely to see racism as a systemic problem was one that said: Black and minority ethnic communities in this country still suffer worse outcomes in education, employment , health and the criminal justice system. In order to achieve true racial equality, we must work for an inclusive Britain where we all feel valued, enjoy equal opportunities and share a common sense of belonging.

The authors said suffering is the language of illness, and while it can elicit empathy, it also suggests BAME victimhood rather than constancy and agency.

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