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Let's not demonise
our fellow citizens
Ali Desai's comment of not
wanting to create a new offence of "travelling whilst Asian"
will come as a relief to many individuals who despair when the "war
on terror" gets used as a pretext for peddling racist stereotypes
('Muslims warn over being singled out at airport gates', 15 August).
Race-based policing has well-documented racist effects, whether or not
advocated by well-intentioned non-racists.
Recent police statistics demonstrate that the black population in London
are four times more likely to be stopped than the white population.
However, the arrest rate resulting from such stops is almost the same at
just over 10% per category.
This means that your race is not a good indicator of your guilt, only a
good indicator of the likelihood of your being unfairly detained if
innocent. Moreover, there is an apt word for treating somebody adversely
purely on the basis of their race: racism.
Desai is a credit to the force and we need more like him if we are to
maintain our sense of justice and proportion in the battle of ideas.
Dr Shahrar Ali
London Policy Coordinator, Green Party
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