The crimes committed in the UK have become more serious, and the criminals even younger. It is not just a baseball bat or a knife any more, you are hearing about bullets found here, or a gun used, whether it is a blank or the real thing.

So what is being done for our young Blacks in Britain? We have to regain their respect and confidence. It is also important that we get across to them at an early age, and direct them away from a life of crime. Modern youths are more concerned with what’s on the outside and not what’s inside: the Bling Bling culture. This may give you “nuff respect” on the street but mostly is not currency or a passport to success in the real world.

Everyone keeps saying “education is the key” but if the young people today have to “fit in” to the way society thinks they are supposed to do, we are on a continuous circle. For instance certain body language means different things in different cultures, than they may do in the British sense. Yet, to a teacher these codes may be interpreted as “anti-social” or “aggressive,” thereby leading that child to be considered for exclusion.

“When you control a man’s thinking you do not have to worry about his actions.”
Carter G. Woodson

All said and done young adults can use the trend of focus groups that are based on self esteem projects, but aren’t we forgetting one basic criterion here! If these young adults saw that they where part of the system too and that they weren’t the cause of the problems, it would undoubtedly improve their self esteem and make a real difference to their lives. But, we know it all comes down to wiping out institutional racism…

“The events, which transpired five thousand years ago; five years ago or five minutes ago, have determined what will happen five minutes from now; five years from now or five thousand years from now. All history is a current event.” (John Henrik Clarke)

Lack of prospects not only leads to disillusionment, it can also lead to crime. The government knows it has a great deal to do to recapture the hearts and minds of disillusioned youth. More than a quarter of a century after the introduction of the race relations act, significant differences between ethnic groups in the workplace are still widespread. According to recent research, Black and Asian ethnic minority workers have lower pay than their white counterparts, are more likely to be unemployed, and are less likely to be found in the higher ranks of management. This will continue until Britain makes all people feel they have a stake in society, regardless of race, colour or creed.

It is worth remembering the words from an African proverb: “If we stand tall it is because we stand on the backs of those who came before us.”