Education the solution to racism
Research launched today by online charity, YouthNet, to coincide with European Youth Week (2-9 November 2008), suggests that young people in the UK believe our multi-cultural society and having friends from other cultures makes the country a better place.
Three quarters (72%) of the young people surveyed had friends from different countries or ethnic backgrounds and over half (55%) of all respondents welcomed this as an opportunity to learn about different cultures and expand their minds and experiences. Two thirds (63%) of respondents said that having a multicultural society makes the UK a better place.
However, almost half (46%) agreed that racial tension in the UK was getting worse and three quarters (69%) believed there was a general lack of awareness about other cultures in the UK. The majority (82%) of the young people surveyed thought that children should be taught about different cultures in school.
The research, which explored 841 young British people's attitudes towards diversity in the UK and European citizenship, as well as inter-cultural issues such as immigration and racism, was funded by the Youth in Action Programme and co-ordinated by the British Council.
Chief Executive of young people's charity YouthNet, Fiona Dawe, said: "In this report, young people's views on Europe – and on race, immigration and multiculturalism in the UK today make interesting and encouraging reading, since for the most part they feel optimistic and open minded about the UK's multicultural society and the possibilities for the future of the UK's relationship with Europe."
In addition to the survey, the charity carried out a series of focus group sessions and, in-line with the survey results, many of the young people who took part felt that multiculturalism was part of British culture, with descriptions of 'Britishness' including 'flexible and all-embracing' and a 'morphing melting pot of culture and ideals'.
Like the survey respondents, the focus group members blamed a lack of understanding and education on the perceived increasing racial tension in the UK, and listed education and schools, as well as more balanced media coverage, as the key components in addressing racial tension and encouraging integration between different communities in the UK.
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Media Enquiries:
For further media information - or a copy of the Britain and Beyond Report – please contact Sarah Wilson at YouthNet on 020 7250 5716 or out-of-hours on 07766 660 755. Email media@youthnet.org
Notes to Editors
- YouthNet is the UK's first exclusively online charity and was founded by Martyn Lewis CBE in 1995. It aims to create a socially inclusive environment where all young adults are engaged, informed and inspired to achieve their ambitions and dreams. YouthNet does this through two award winning websites, the online guide to life for 16 to 24-year-olds TheSite.org, and the UK's leading volunteering website, do-it.org.uk.
- The Britain and Beyond Report is the result of research by YouthNet, carried out via TheSite.org. Between 21 May and 1 July 2008, 841 young people from the UK aged between 16 and 24 completed the online survey. In addition to this an online focus group took place on TheSite.org in early June 2008 over a period of five days.
- Britain and Beyond was funded by the Youth in Action programme, coordinated in the UK by the British Council