Ethnic minorities determined to influence elections
by David Mullenax
Over 70 seats in the upcoming British election could be decided by Blacks and other ethnic minorities. Operation Black Vote, a campaign organization that launched “The Black Manifesto” last week, insists that political parties that remain ambivalent to minority needs will be dealt with harshly.
The Manifesto is necessitating a new “Race Minister” government post and a race equalities unit to be established in the Cabinet. Also on the agenda is an Affirmative Action program calling for racial quotas in the central government that would replace positions currently held by Whites with non-White minorities.
Karen Chouhan of the 1990 Trust complained that not enough has been done to benefit racial minorities and a new comprehensive action plan would greatly correct unfulfilled promises to stop racism. “The old methods of dealing with racism and inequality clearly haven’t worked. We cannot leave generation after generation without hope of the possibility of positive change,” Chouhan said.
Policy proposals within the Black Manifesto appear to be aimed directly at the British National Party. A partial list of demands include: outlawing the extreme right by banning political parties that contravene race or human rights laws; legally binding intake quotas for low-income black children in high-achieving schools, colleges and universities; and an end to “draconian” asylum policies such as forced dispersal and detention of asylum seekers.
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