Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

that the media is horrible at race relations right now?

5 replies

cocacolamonster · 11/04/2018 21:31

I'm Sri Lankan Tamil and find that a lot of left-wing news outlets are spinning racial and ethnic issues to suit their agenda, often creating problems in places where said problems do not exist. I actually get the impression that a lot of left-wing outlets are more racist than right-wing outlets if only for the way they cherry pick their race stories.

For example, lot of left-wing outlets almost inflame (or sensationalise) the conflict between Tamils and Sinhalese (lingustic groups like French vs Dutch) despite the fact that most Tamils and Sinhalese on the island get along, universally among the younger generation who are more preoccupied with gaining access to the Indian labour market.

The picture they paint of the communities in the UK is also very one-sided. I have yet to meet a Tamil person who has attended one of those protests or vocally supported liberal policies on immirgration, yet outlets such as The Guardian would make you believe that the Tamil community were viciously against of right-wing viewpoints on the community.

Historically, racism against East Asians was generally ignored and most discussion about racism focused on the Black community, though nowadays Muslims have becaome the main political battleground. I wonder if most people realise that that the left-wing media can often drive a lot of the racial conflict themselves by sensationalising and cherry picking.

Being second generation, it's also become the case that the left-wing has generally lost it's shine for social liberalism - the right-wing is supportive of homosexuals and women, with most Sri Lankans in the UK being middle class (immirgration is now practically non-existant and the communities are basically into their second generation).

OP posts:
EenaMinaMoe · 11/04/2018 22:05

My family are Sri Lankan and would strongly agree with you, but I think a lot of people in the community are naturally fairly conservative and would lean that way no matter what the Guardian says! Don't entirely agree that there's no acrimony re: Tamil and Sinhala either, or the other ethnic groups - when I was there in July/August I definitely heard a fair bit of anti-Tamil racism from some Sinhala friends. It's got a lot better, admittedly, if I look at my parents generation. Some of the stuff my uncle and father in law say makes my brain bleed.

EenaMinaMoe · 11/04/2018 22:07

Also, I do know a fair few first generation Tamil immigrants in the UK - mostly refugees before the civil war ended. Don't know if that's just local to the area I live in though. My family all came over in the 1960s which I guess backs up your thought.

cocacolamonster · 12/04/2018 19:39

The UK was going through a period of conservatism at the time and the ones that got into the UK were mainly from the English speaking educated class of the island, so in general the Tamils in the UK didn't have as many problems with socioeconomics as the ones in Continental Europe - though in both cases the second generation are well educated.

I presume that most people don't care about this topic considering the lack of responses. Maybe the problem is more symbolic of a lack of centrism in UK media.

OP posts:
EenaMinaMoe · 12/04/2018 20:59

I'm sorry! It might be my fault by responding and making it a very Sri Lankan thread which is maybe a bit niche. Honestly, in my experience most Brits I know don't give a damn about Sri Lanka and a lot don't even know what Sinhala and Tamil are. Let alone burgher, or Kandyan (my family are Burgher and Sinhala).

I am sure other people would like to respond but maybe are more comfortable with a wider focus.

MissionItsPossible · 13/04/2018 09:54

I've said it before and will say it again: People (rightly) criticise the Daily Mail but the Guardian seems to get a free pass when they can be just as bad.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page