RURAL RACISM

That should say to a rural village in Japan, rather than Japan as a whole, in my post above.

This kind of comment about "lack of diversity" is a bit weird. As if lack of ethnic diversity is a moral failing of some kind.

It's difficult to imagine someone going to Japan and saying that with quite the same implication. Sure - they might notice as a matter of interest that there is not a ton of racial diversity. They might even notice that they are not super welcoming to outsiders, that they really notice you, as a non-Japanese person who stands out in the community, and you might find it makes you feel more noticeable than you'd like.

But no one would suggest that really, they would be better people if only there was a greater mix of races. Nor if the same scenario was played out in the millions of villages worldwide which are fairly ethnically homogeneous.

Yes, for sure, though I think family culture can be quite strong for generations, so if you have a family from a very urban oriented culture, you may be less likely to get their kids interested in the country than someone from a more rurally focused culture.

For example, while I grew up in the city, as did my parents, and some of my ancestors have been city dwellers for generations, I also have some parts of my family with very strong rural ties, and I spent time as a child in rural areas because of that.

Things like that make a difference when you are talking about how populations move over time.

It’s local policy to provide home for young people in the locality because village house prices are so high, councils in urban areas do the same.

Shouldn’t get suckered in by bridge dwellers but can’t help myself.

I haven’t started my own threads on Mumsnet for years! Who are you referring to?

and as for your next post - you don’t follow the logic of the PP’s sentence. ‘Not saying they have experienced racism’ does not mean they expressly stated that they have not experienced racism.

There are push and pull factors in all types of migration, that is why there isnt much ethnic diversity in rural villages not because they are unnofficial gated communities that run any non whites out of town.
I can say I have not experienced people voicing racist views in the safety of all white company.
Nowhere is as isolated as it once was, where i live lots of people have lived or worked away in big cities or abroad and experienced more diverse environments before moving "home" when they have kids, definitely not an enclave of knuckle draggers.

That is beyond gross.
Unspeakable.

A Surgeon’s son at our school lived in a very affluent street and there were racist comments- Envy, I think in retrospect- that he and his family lived there.

It's hard being the only non white face for miles but saying that many Indian origin friends in the medical profession have moved into areas that aren't diverse.

Someone I know of my ethnicity (and very well off) moved to rural south east England into a gorgeous picture postcard village (1990s) and had dog shit put through their letter box. It almost seemed worse to have that awfulness in such a beautiful place.

@profilehopper tick

White people feeling insulted when racism is pointed out: tick

white people feeling personally attacked and also generalised when racism is pointed out: tick

white people telling people of colour that the racism they have experienced and recounted is not racism: tick

white people not only refusing to acknowledge that there is racism, but also actively gaslighting people who have experienced it in their lives: tick

I’m white, but the way. And grew up in an almost entirely white area of rural Britain.

for most of my life I thought rural racism wasn’t a thing here, because that’s what I was taught and told, and because I had not “seen” it.

newsflash… it’s real. We didnt “see” it because we didn’t have many people of colour in our community, and those who were here had long learned not to speak about their experience, even in their own family units.

White people are the ones who need to talk more about race, and do the work to acknowledge their own part in structural, and non structural racism.

if we don’t take responsibility and ownership, and do better, it’s just going to keep rolling. And black and brown children will continue to grow up feeling they don’t belong in rural Britain. And black and brown families will continue to experience maternal mortality at five times the rate of white British families.

"The level of denial on this thread is not surprising - it’s very typical of white rural dwellers.

Plea to the white rural people in this thread: if you want to actually listen, and understand more, and maybe even do better at reducing the harm of rural racism, start by reading Reni Eddo-Lodge."

See this is where the problem lies, you are classing all rural white people in an homogeneous group of racist or sub conscious racists. Asking all rural white people to read up on their bias and if they do not agree it must just be denial and are actually racists.

Sorry but no, many people are sick to death of being informed what we are racist just because we are born white and need educating continually, that does not mean we deny racism exists. But your labelling all white rural white people into one group is no better, than racist white people grouping all non whites.

Infract looking at the top review of the book on amazon, it actually makes me realise I`d rather not read it thanks.

I've lived all over Europe and we have now settled in a rural village in SW Scotland..... The word insular is an understatement and I'm still shocked when I hear some comments in the pub.

Even my 10yr old commented about the lack of diversity. I think the first non white brit we came across in a city day out over 40 miles away.

@NoooooCoooooode I’m not denying anything, just pointing out- in the absence of racism specific examples, or even nods to them, in the post in question- that some village folk hate everyone who’s not local.

I don’t class myself as a white liberal since that’s a seen as being a bit too white saviour these days, and I’m not a flag-waving racist. I do, like a lot of white people, find it difficult to keep the right balance- one minute we should see the person not the colour, then we should see the colour and celebrate it- fine, no issue either way as long as non-white people are content. But that’s a blanket statement and you’re not all the same, though apparently we white folk are all the same and all racist?

In the absence of given specific examples many events can be classed as racist, as ageist, as sexist, as classist- maybe the neighbours don’t like your age bracket or your gender, maybe you’re too flashy or too poor? In the case of specific racist examples then that’s unforgivable but there is not racism at the heart of every time a white person disagrees with a non-white person and vice versa.

Neither say they have experienced any racism, thank goodness

Don’t mistake this for them not having experienced racism

So even if they are saying that they have not experienced any of this, you have decided in your head that they must be lying. Why not believe them? Extremely offensive and gaslighty. Rural people don't stand a chance, do they?

*reading a book titled “Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race”

Why don't you follow the book's advice and stop opening threads about this every two seconds then?

Do you realise it's very insulting to most people and it does nothing to achieve a real improvement?

How much evidence would you need to hear before you accepted that this first-hand account of rural racism might actually be, in fact, rural racism?

There is no amount of evidence which some people will accept. When all else fails it becomes "you have a chip on your shoulder" as ancientgran has already been told on this thread.

being not local is not the same as being not white

True but when your grandparents were born here and people still ask "but where are you from" and assume you need access to "ethnic shops" it does show how the two are conflated.

the whataboutery and denial on this thread is typical and if you’re one of the people doing it, take a look at yourself and wonder what is leading you to be the gaslighting racism denier

^This. White people falling over themselves to deny and explain away racism is such a good look.

As for communities - I was born into a community which doesn't exist any more as "incomers" bought up all the private and former public owned properties and largely keep them empty. Nobody cares though was it was in a city. Communities being uprooted and dispersed only matters if you are in bucolic (and white) villages.

Omg, seriously?

How much evidence would you need to hear before you accepted that this first-hand account of rural racism might actually be, in fact, rural racism?

being not local is not the same as being not white.

the whataboutery and denial on this thread is typical and if you’re one of the people doing it, take a look at yourself and wonder what is leading you to be the gaslighting racism denier.

Ancientgran I’m admiring your dignity in the face of the hostility and racism-denial on this thread.

This!

Growing up as the only black or brown child in your village, school, college etc is a big deal, with lifelong effects.

Rural racism is a real thing.

The level of denial on this thread is not surprising - it’s very typical of white rural dwellers.

Plea to the white rural people in this thread: if you want to actually listen, and understand more, and maybe even do better at reducing the harm of rural racism, start by reading Reni Eddo-Lodge.

And if the thought of publicly reading a book titled “Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race” give you the fear, or hesitation, take that as a big sign you really do need to read it.

No racist incidents because there's no non-white people there? @Swayingpalmtrees

This is classic denial of rural racism because you, personally, have not seen or heard of it.

You most likely would not recognise it if you saw it right in front of you.

Go read Reni Eddo-Lodge - it will open your eyes in a good way.

@MangyInseam well if they grew up in the UK, they would have been exposed to such ideals. It's not the case for me, my aunt back home was sniggering that I bought a flat in zone 3 (cos it was her belief that you should only buy in zone 1 or zone 2), guess that's your perspective when your entire country is literally half the size of greater London.

There are shows like escape to the country ...

I wonder if that isn't a cultural thing.

There is definitely a sort of pastoral ideal that exists in UK culture. I'm not sure that is true in the same way in all cultures though. Some seem to have a more urban focus.

Of course there are plenty of white people who would never consider moving out of a city either.