Racism/Racial Tensions at Oxbridge

I can't believe you never met black people before uni :eek:

. I didn't realise they were that rare. I've been amongst mixed race people since primary school and possibly before! I wasn't aware that the north was so lacking in ethnic minority groups :confused:

Athena --> I hadn't appreciated you were a Midlander too :p:

Reply 22

Feefifofum

Chassez

Come to think of it I'd never met a black person before uni, I'm from north-east England. A friend from Newquay had never seen an Asian student before, I found that surprising.

I'm from the North-East too, and from the area you'd probably least expect to find black people (Gosforth) but I've got quite a few black friends at home. The NE is ethnically quite diverse, I'm not sure how you could live there for a long time and not even MEET someone black.

As for Oxford: as a city it's really culturally varied, I don't think you'd ever come across racism just on the streets. It is true, however, that there are relatively few black students here. That is partially to do with the number that apply though - I only met one black person at interviews, as far as I remember. Somewhere, there's a list of application statistics, which gives applications and acceptances by racial background (among other things, obviously). Could someone provide this link?

Reply 23

Brown Patrick Bateman

Feefifofum

I'm from the North-East too, and from the area you'd probably least expect to find black people (Gosforth) but I've got quite a few black friends at home. The NE is ethnically quite diverse, I'm not sure how you could live there for a long time and not even MEET someone black.

I'm from a town in Teesside; at school (mixed comp) there was at most 5/100+ Asian students per year, to my memory one black person in the whole school. Middlesbrough nearby has a massive Pakistani population - over 35% in some wards, not sure what the black population is, but nonetheless I don't recall meeting any. Situation will be different in Leeds and Newcastle I'm sure.

feefifofum

As for Oxford: as a city it's really culturally varied, I don't think you'd ever come across racism just on the streets. It is true, however, that there are relatively few black students here. That is partially to do with the number that apply though - I only met one black person at interviews, as far as I remember. Somewhere, there's a list of application statistics, which gives applications and acceptances by racial background (among other things, obviously). Could someone provide this link?

There's a supplement annually at www.ox.ac.uk/gazette -> Supplements (change the URL to 05-06, 04-05, 03-04 etc). Not many apply, but the % success rate at getting an offer is still considerably below average.

2002 2003 2004
Apps % Success % Apps % Success % Apps % Success %
Black African 0.9 20.0 1.1 14.0 1.1 15.1
Black Caribbean 0.3 35.7 0.2 19.0 0.3 23.1
Black Other 0.1 8.3 0.1 15.4 0.2 12.5
All Applicants 100.0 33.3 100.0 30.2 100.0 28.3

(See the above table & graph clearly: fig 1.4 and 1.5 on p 9/10 here. )

Reply 24

Queen_A

Feefifofum

As for Oxford: as a city it's really culturally varied, I don't think you'd ever come across racism just on the streets. It is true, however, that there are relatively few black students here. That is partially to do with the number that apply though - I only met one black person at interviews, as far as I remember. Somewhere, there's a list of application statistics, which gives applications and acceptances by racial background (among other things, obviously). Could someone provide this link?

Not that it matters, but are there any black people (that you can recall, obviously) at Hilda's? I ask because I'd suspect they'd be more, due to the number of international applicants there. I didn't stay there during interviews, but there generally tends to be one/two per college, right? I remember at Magdalen, there was one other black girl applying for English, and everyone kept saying "Oh, you're applying for English, aren't you" - I kept having to reply "No, that's ...another girl." (I wanted to start saying "that's the other one..", but that's too cruel)

EDIT: Realised this doesn't make sense. Too much revision..

Reply 25

F1 fanatic

I can't believe you never met black people before uni :eek:

. I didn't realise they were that rare.

i'm from devon and at the age of 18 have never spoken to a 'black' person, although one of my friends is chinese and another white south african thats as multicultural as it gets. At my school (including 6th form) out of about 850 people (including staff) there is NOT 1 black person, although as said before there are a few chinese.
However this does not mean just because you've never met a black person you are racist.

Reply 26

Brown Patrick Bateman

alispam

However this does not mean just because you've never met a black person you are racist.

Reply 27

Queen_A

alispam

i'm from devon and at the age of 18 have never spoken to a 'black' person, although one of my friends is chinese and another white south african thats as multicultural as it gets. At my school (including 6th form) out of about 850 people (including staff) there is NOT 1 black person, although as said before there are a few chinese.
However this does not mean just because you've never met a black person you are racist.

I was the one who brought up the fact that I'd met people who had never spoken to a black person before, and I did in no way suggest that that person would therefore be racist. They are usually more conscious of the fact, given that they would find it strange, but that's only natural.
Athena and F1 were merely expressing surprise at the fact that some people from the North of England had never met a black person before. That was it.

Reply 28

To address a remark about rarity of black people in Britain, there are ONLY 900,000 black people in Britain out of of 60m.

Reply 29

alispam

i'm from devon and at the age of 18 have never spoken to a 'black' person

Why are you putting it in inverted commas?

Reply 30

i wasn't having a go at people suggesting that, i was mearly commenting on that. i agree with your view and think that is the point of uni to mix with people you wouldn't at home.

Reply 31

HannahZ

Race just isn't a big issue in England, particularly in London and the South-East where most of the students come from.

Possibly the most laughable comment in the thread.

Reply 32

Troy :0)

Some of my posh white mates have made 'slip ups' in front of me

What slip ups?

Reply 33

PrinceOfCats

I'm from the North-East too, and from the area you'd probably least expect to find black people (Gosforth) but I've got quite a few black friends at home. The NE is ethnically quite diverse, I'm not sure how you could live there for a long time and not even MEET someone black.

But the NE is the least ethnically diverse part of England, I don't understand? I'm from Jesmond, Newcastle, went to state school, I'd guess there were about 1-2 black people in my year, and 15-20 other ethnicities out of a total of about 200.

Just because most people are white, doesn't mean they are racist though... that's pretty illogical.

Reply 34

F1 fanatic

alispam

However this does not mean just because you've never met a black person you are racist.

Of course it doesn't mean you are racist just because you have not met a black person. That was not at all implied in my comment. I'm just surprised given how multicultural Britain has become. In a way it's a shame that you have not got to meet and talk to people from other cultures and backgrounds. :frown:

Reply 35

passthesaltplease

5

Please come to Oxford.
Don't let fear of ignorant racists put you off EVER doing ANYTHING you want to.

I'd bet if you were racially abused every single African, TSR poster, African Studies student and person with even a vague sense of moral conscience would get together and make that person wish they were never born - put bubblegum in their hair, arsenic in their toothpaste that sort of thing.

Reply 36

i agree, "multicultual briton" only seems to apply to the larger cities and the SE, the south west is not what you call ethnically diverse...

Reply 37

F1 fanatic

alispam

i agree, "multicultual briton" only seems to apply to the larger cities and the SE, the south west is not what you call ethnically diverse...

I guess this is true. But have you not travelled around the UK a bit? Have you never been to London or anything? Or abroad even?

Reply 38

i've been abroad to switzerland (not the most mulitcultural country), seeing as all my family is the south west i do not have extensive UK travel. Outside the SW i've been to wales, oxford, york and yes london. I've been to N and S wales and apart from cardiff have not found it that multicultural, oxford a bit more, york samish as oxford (although i was only there for a day so probably not fair to judge). Been to touristy bits of london and hence havn't really been much exposed to its mulitcultural side...

Reply 39