Show Racism the Red Card - 'the Attitudes of Young People

1

To what extent do young people share

potentially damaging attitudes with far right

groups and where do these ideas come

from? What are the opportunities and risks

that this presents?

A research report developed by anti-racism educational charity Show

Racism the Red Card

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CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION..3

The changing face of the far right..5

Who are the English Defence League (EDL).6

METHODOLOGY.7

RESULTS 10

RESULTS: Survey version 1 (April 2012 November 2012).10

RESULTS: Survey version 2 (November 2012 March 2014).56

AKNOWLEDGEMENTS92

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INTRODUCTION

Show Racism the Red Card (SRtRC) is the UKs anti-racism educational charity and

was established in January 1996. The organisation utilises the high-profile status of

football and football players to help tackle racism in society. The majority of the

campaigns output is the delivery of education to young people and adults in their

schools, their workplaces and at events held in football stadiums. Across Britain,

SRtRC delivers training to more than 50,000 individuals per year.

Show Racism the Red Card Workshops are fully participatory and contain a range of

auditory, visual and kinaesthetic activities to engage all learners. Workshops are

tailored to meet the needs of the learners and consideration is given to; time

available, their age, ability, previous knowledge and whether it is an introductory or

follow up visit from SRtRC.

In April 2012, SRtRC secured funding from the Department for Communities and

Local Government (DCLG) to deliver a two year programme of work designed to

combat the influence of far right street movements on young peoples attitudes and

behaviours.

The project represents a national initiative to challenge contemporary racism and

educate about the dangers of far right groups. The project focused on the delivery of

four distinct but inter-dependant strands designed to develop a comprehensive

approach to identifying and challenging the influence of far right groups on the

development of attitudes among young people.

The four strands of the programme are:

Full day adult and teacher training events tailored towards tackling anti

Muslim hatred and the influence of the far right.

Targeted programmes of school based education with young people

addressing the underlying causes of involvement with far right activity.

Research into the impact that the activities of the English Defence League

and other far right groups are having on young peoples attitudes and

wellbeing.

The development of a brand new educational resource No Place for Hate

Through the delivery of the four distinct strands of this targeted programme of work,

Show Racism the Red Card, the Department for Communities and Local Government

and the National Union of Teachers aim to:

Raise awareness among young people of the dangers of associating with far

right organisations such as the EDL

Help young people to think critically about the information they receive and

understand the harm that is caused by division and hatred

Empower young people with knowledge and understanding to challenge and

refute racist and Islamophobic ideals

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Provide teachers, youth leaders and educators with a better understanding of

the issues prevalent among the young people they work with and provide

them with the tools to continue to tackle racism and Islamophobia through

interaction with their pupils

This report presents the results of the two year research activity carried out in

conjunction with targeted programmes of school based education which sought to

answer the question To what extent do young people share potentially damaging

attitudes with far right groups and where do these ideas come from? What are the

opportunities and risks that this presents?

The far right and the English Defence League

The Collins English Dictionary defines the term far right as the more extreme

supporters or advocates of social, political, or economic conservatism or reaction,

based generally on a belief that things are better left unchanged.

Show Racism the Red Card accepts that the popularity of groups like the EDL may

wane, and in anticipation of this, educational activities and resources associated with

this project have been designed to challenge the ideas commonly associated with

the far right more widely and to assist both teachers and young people in the

development of a critical capacity required to make informed decisions about

organisations such as the EDL and about some of the key aspects of far right politics.

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THE CHANGING FACE OF THE FAR-RIGHT

Far-right groups such as the National Front have existed in the UK for a long time.

However, recent years have seen the emergence of a new type of far-right social

movement. These groups are not political parties, but favour direct action, utilising

social media to organise marches and street demonstrations. Founded in 2009, at

the height of its popularity, the English Defence League (EDL) was the largest of

these groups.

Whereas traditional far-right groups espouse biological racism the belief that

people are biologically inferior, much of the rhetoric from the EDL and similar

groups, is of cultural racism and nationalism a belief that the British way of life is

being threatened by immigration and the presence of people who have different

religions, cultures and beliefs, particularly Muslims.

They also express dissatisfaction with the current political system and believe that

traditional political parties have little to offer. The EDL differs from traditional far-

right groups, in that they claim to be welcoming of Jewish and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual

and Transgender (LGBT) people and even have Jewish and LGBT divisions.

However, The Jewish Chronicle, Community Security Trust and LGBT groups have

issued statements condemning these as efforts to mask that homophobia and anti-

Semitism are still key features of the far-right in this current guise.

Young people who become involved with these groups are saddled with the burden

of fear, prejudice and hate and can be drawn into behaviours that are damaging,

both for themselves and the people around them.

EDL demonstrations create fear and tensions within the communities where they

take place: they are often marked by violence and arrests, both of EDL supporters

and counterdemonstrators.

They cost a considerable amount of money to police, cause damage to local

business, shops and markets as people stay away or shops remain closed.

The EDL has already begun to fragment and new groups, which also organise street

protests, flash demonstrations and other forms of direct action, have been created

by people previously associated with the group. For example, the Infidels in North

East and North West England are more violent, more extreme, and more openly

racist than the EDL, whilst Britain First are more direct in their provocation of

Muslims.

Undoubtedly, new groups will continue to emerge and existing groups will change

tactics and direction as time goes on.

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WHO ARE THE EDL?

The English Defence League is a far-right social movement which was formed in

2009. The movement was formed as a response to a group of protesters who

demonstrated at a homecoming parade by the British Army in Luton, Bedfordshire.

The protesters (mainly made up of members of the, now banned, Islamist extremist

group, Al Muhajiroun) felt that the celebration of the soldiers return was wrong and

they held offensive banners condemning the actions of the British Army. This

prompted the formation of The United People of Luton, which later became the EDL.

The English Defence League was formed around a network of existing football casual

and hooligan groups and until October 2013, was led by Stephen Yaxley-Lennon,

who uses the pseudonym, Tommy Robinson.

The EDL organises street protests across England which often culminate in

drunkenness and violence. Many arrests have been made at these demonstrations,

both of EDL members and of counter-demonstrators who come to protest against

the EDL.

The EDL claims only to oppose Militant Islam (which is an extreme interpretation of

Islamic ideology, practised by a very small number of the worlds Muslims) but, much

of the rhetoric is directed against all Muslims and portrays Islam as a barbaric

religion.

Their social networking profile and the chants which can be heard on their

demonstrations clearly illustrate this, as does their violent opposition to the building

of Mosques and other buildings centred on the teachings of Islam.

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METHODOLOGY

Show Racism the Red Card has conducted research into the attitudes of young

people and the extent to which these attitudes are shared with far right groups

including the English Defence League.

It is the intention of this report to present the key findings from this two year

research activity; however the purpose of this study is not to paint a complete

picture of the situation across the country but to highlight some of the issues which

exist for some young people in some educational institutions and communities.

The intended outcomes of this research are:

An indication of the prevalance of attitudes advocated by far right groups

such as the EDL amongst young people

An understanding of where young people are acquiring attitudes that

increase their vulnerability to becoming involved with these groups

An indication of what attracts young people to get involved with the far right

Increased awareness of the impact that the influence that far right street

movements are having on young peoples attitudes and behaviours

In order to add validity to the work and to reinforce findings, SRtRC employed a

mixed-method approach, including questionnaires, focus groups with young people

and staff journals. Multiple methods can add validity to the work and reinforce

findings (Denscombe, 1998:23)

Questionnaires

Between April 2012 and April 2014 Show Racism the Red Card attempted to survey

the opinions of all of the young people who took part in anti-racism education

workshops focused on addressing the underlying causes of involvement with far

right activity.

By the end of the project we worked with 8,793 young people from a variety of

educational institutions throughout nine distinct regions within England. We

developed a pre-intervention, self-completion questionnaire, in order to collect

quantitative data from young people, aged between 11 and 14. The young people

were from schools where teachers have expressed an interest in undertaking further

work on this issue with their young people, and in the majority of cases Show Racism

the Red Card went on to work with these young people in a classroom environment.

The survey results were used not only to contribute towards this wider research

project and report, but to provide insight into specific attiudes and issues present

amoung the young people we would be working with in preperation of our

educational interventions.

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Pre-intervention questionnaires were undertaken by 5,945 young people, with 4,443

(75%) completing surveys in full. Each of the 8,793 young people who benefited from

tailored anti-racism education workshops as part of the wider two year project were

given the opportunity to complete the survey, providing an overall response rate of

68%. Whilst this sample size is clearly not representative of the population of 11-16

year olds in full time education in England, Show Racism the Red Card believes this

to be the largest survey into the shared attitudes of young people and far right

groups undertaken to date.

Questionnaires were distributed to schools in electronic format for completion by

participating young people and were also available in paper format to those who

stated a preference.

The survey was designed using a range of data capture techniques including simple

yes and no responses to statements and psychometric scales to gauge the

strength of opinions. Young people were encouraged to provide more detailed

responses in their own words and free text boxes were used to capture this

information. A full analysis of these free text responses fell outside of the scope of

this project so it has not been possible to include them as part of this report.

Requests to make this information available for research purposes will be considered

on a case by case basis.

Survey questions were amended in November 2012 to reduce the burden of

completion for participants and to better reflect some of the key issues raised during

the first six months of classroom interventions including what Education Workers

perceived to be a lack of understanding about the religion of Islam. The presentation

of data from both versions of the survey in the Results section will highlight the

changes to questioning mentioned above.

The numbers of respondents to each survey question will match the data presented

within graphs and tables except for those instances where respondents were given

the opportunity to provide multiple answers to a single question.

Staff Journals

As part of the wider project Combating the Influence of Far Right Social Movements

on Young Peoples Attitudes and Behaviours, Show Racism the Red Card Education

Workers delivered anti-racism workshops aimed at countering the influence of far

right street movements on young peoples attitudes and behaviours throughout the

country, working with over 8,500 young people between April 2012 and March 2014.

During this period, Show Racism the Red Card Education Workers completed

journals in which they recorded some of the experiences that they have had whilst

working in schools and delivering teacher training.

Journals encouraged Education Workers to record their overall impressions of the

intervention delivered, including the appetite for engagement among young people

and school teachers, and their perspective on specific issues or behaviours displayed

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by young people during the intervention. Each core workshop was reflected upon

alongside additional elements of interventions including opening and closing

assemblies and free-time observations to create a picture of each school visit.

Challenges and opportunities were recorded to support continuous assessment and

future delivery.

The journals have proved to be a valuable source of rich information, which can not

necessarily be gathered through other methods, where worries about how they

would be perceived may create a contradiction between real attitudes and a desire

to create a particular impression.

Show Racism the Red Card employs four full-time Education Workers who deliver

anti-racism workshops to young people throughout the country. These Education

Workers are supported by a team of ex professional footballers and education

specialists, and staff journals were a great way of capturing the perspectives of a

diverse team, perspectives which are used in this report to illustrate a number of the

key themes that are supported by the results of this research activity.

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RESULTS

This section will present the results of the activity to capture the opinions of young

people via the surveys described in the previous methodology section.

The results from surveys completed between April 2012 and November 2012 will be

clearly marked as Survey 1, whilst those completed between November 2012 and

March 2014 will be presented under the heading Survey 2. As described in the

Methodology section of this report, survey questions were amended in November

2012 to reduce the burden of completion for participants and to better reflect some

of the key issues raised during the first six months of classroom interventions

including what Education Workers perceived to be a lack of understanding about the

religion of Islam.

Survey 1 results (April 2012 November 2012)

During this period, the survey was completed by 3362 young people in preparation

for their participation in tailored anti-racism workshops delivered by Show Racism

the Red Card. The results from each question, together with the response rate is

presented below.

Q1. What is your age and sex?

2,638 respondents provided an answer, 126 skipped the question.

18% of respondents were aged 10

30% of respondents were 11.


11% aged 13

15% of respondents to the survey were 14

6% were 15

Less than 1% of respondents to the survey were aged 16+

(see Table 1 & Figure 1)

50% of respondents were male

50% were female


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Table 1 - What is your age?

Table 2 What is your sex?

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Figure 1 What is your age?

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Figure 2 What is your sex?

Questions two and three (What is the name of your school? and Do you have any

pets?) were used as markers or identifiers to enable deeper analysis of responses

whilst maintaining the anonymity of respondents. The presence of such questions

could enable investigation into trends at a regional or individual school level and an

isolated analysis of an individuals response to the full survey. Whilst Show Racism

the Red Card recognise that there may be further, very valuable data which could be

drawn from such analysis, this was not part of the original research brief and is

therefore not included within this report.

Q4. How would you describe your ethnicity?


10% of respondents described their ethnicity as Asian or British Asian

o 4% of those further identified themselves as Bangladeshi

o 60% specifically identified themselves as Asian or British Asian

o 7% of the above as Indian

o 16% as Pakistani

o 12% as Any other Asian background

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5% described themselves as Black or Black British

o 20% of the above further described their ethnicity as African

o 40% further described their ethnicity as Black British

o 9% further described their ethnicity as Caribbean

o 28% of the above further described their ethnicity as Other Black

background

3% of respondents to the survey described themselves as Chinese or other

ethnic group

o 23% of the above further described their ethnicity as Chinese

o 77% of the above further described their ethnicity as Other Ethnic

Group

5% described themselves as Mixed

o 45% of the above further described their ethnicity as Black & White

o 22% of the above further described their ethnicity as White & Asian

o 3% of the above further described their ethnicity as Black & Asian

o 30% of the above further described their ethnicity as Any other

mixed background

80% of respondents described their ethnicity as White

o 96% of the above further described their ethnicity as White

o 1% of the above further described their ethnicity as Irish

o 1% of the above further described their ethnicity as Gypsy or

Traveller

o 2% of the above further described their ethnicity as Other

4% of respondents described their ethnicity as Other

o 40% of those selected the option Id rather not say

o 60% of those selected the option I dont know


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Table 3 How would you describe your ethnicity?

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Figure 3 How would you describe your ethnicity?

Q5. Which of the following best describes your religious background?

3,155 students responded to this question, 207 students skipped this question

3% of respondents answered Agnostic

8% of respondents said Athiest

Less than 1% of respondents said Buddhist

32% of respondents said Christian

1% of respondents said Hindu

46% of respondents said that they had no religion

5% of respondents said they would rather not say

Less than 1% of respondents said Jewish

5% of respondents said Muslim

Less than 1% said Sikh

(See Table 4 & Figure 4)

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Table 4 Which of the following best describes your religious background?

Figure 4 - Which of the following best describes your religious background?

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Q6. Do you belong to any clubs or groups? This can either be through school or in

your local area.

2,888 respondents answered this question. 474 respondents skipped this question.

50% of respondents said that they belonged to sports clubs

7% of respondents said they belonged to the Scouts

5% of respondents said that they belonged to the Guides

2% were members of the cadets

6% of respondents were involved in a local youth group

11% were part of a music group

9% of respondents were part of a drama group

3% were part of an art group

Less than 1% were involved in political groups

4% of respondents were part of other social groups

31% of respondents said that did not belong to any groups


Table 5 Do you belong to any groups or clubs?

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Figure 5 - Do you belong to any clubs or groups?

Q7. Which social media sites do you use?


o 63% of the respondents use Facebook

o 34% of the respondents use Twitter

o 8% of the respondents use Tumblr

o 3% of the respondents use Myspace

o 39% of the respondents use Google +

o 1% of the respondents use Pinterest

o 2% of the respondents use Bebo

o 18% of the respondents dont use social networking sites

(See table 6 & Figure 6)

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Table 6 - Which social media sites do you use?

Figure 6 Which social media sites do you use?

Q8. Please state how much you agree with the statements below

3,154 respondents provided an answer. 206 skipped the question.

In response to the statement I have a fun and interesting life

59% of respondents said This is a lot like me

34% of respondents said This is a bit like me

4% of respondents said This isnt really like me

2% of respondents said This is not like me at all

2% of respondents said they were unsure

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In response to the statement I have good friends






In response to the statement If I have a problem, I know where to get help






In response to the statement I feel good about who I am






In response to the statement I find it easy to trust people






In response to the statement I believe I will achieve what I want in life






In response to the statement I feel there are lots of opportunities for me




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In response to the statement People listen to me and value what I say






(See table 7 & Figure 7)

Table 7 - Please state how much you agree with the statements below.

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Figure 7 - Please state how much you agree with the statements below.

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Q9 - Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving your

goals in the future? Please choose up to 4 answers


o 44% of respondents believe not having enough money might stop them

reaching their goals

o 40% of respondents believe a lack of jobs might stop them reaching their

goals

o 27% of respondents believe jobs been taking by foreign workers might

stop them reaching their goals

o 12% of respondents believe lack of support from their family might stop

them reaching their goals

o 13% of respondents believe lack of support from their school might stop

them reaching their goals

o 38% of respondents believe not knowing what job they would like might

stop them reaching their goals

o 12% of respondents believe not having role models or someone to look

up to might stop them reaching their goals

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o 23% of respondents believe not being able to afford further education

(college, university etc) might stop them reaching their goals

o 22% of the respondents believe these options wont stop them reaching

their goals

o 9% of the respondents chose the option I dont have any goals

(See table 8 & figure 8)

Table 9 - Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving your

goals in the future? Please choose up to 4 answers

Figure 9 - Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving

your goals in the future? Please choose up to 4 answers

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Q10 Which of these newspapers do you see at home?


o 4% of the respondents see The Independent newspaper at home

o 11% of the respondents see The Telegraph newspaper at home

o 2% of the respondents see The Financial Times newspaper at home

o 21% of the respondents see their local newspaper at home

o 19% of the respondents see The Times newspaper at home

o 10% of the respondents see The Guardian newspaper at home

o 4% of the respondents see The Observer newspaper at home

o 60% of the respondents see The Sun newspaper at home

o 8% of the respondents see The Metro newspaper at home

o 35% of the respondents see The Daily Mail newspaper at home

o 12% of the respondents see The Daily Express newspaper

o 13% of the respondents see The Daily Star newspaper at home

o 26% of the respondents see The Mirror newspaper at home

o 4% of the respondents see The I newspaper at home

o 14% of the respondents dont see any newspapers at home

(See Table 9 and figure 9)

Table 9 - Which of these newspapers do you see at home?

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Figure 9 - Which of these newspapers do you see at home?

Q11. Take a moment to think about your life in Britain, then tell us something you

really like about living here and something that you dislike.

2,511 respondents answered this question, 851 respondents skipped the question.

Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to detail their likes and

dislikes about living in Britain.

A full analysis of these free text responses fell outside of the scope of this project so

it has not been possible to include them as part of this report. Requests to make this

information available for research purposes will be considered on a case by case

basis.

Q12. Imagine you're speaking to somebody who lives in another country. They ask

you what it means to be British. What would you say to them?

2,231 respondents answered the question. 1,131 respondents skipped the question.






basis.

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Q13. Many people describe Britain as a Multicultural society. This means that

people in this country have many different backgrounds, skin colours, cultures and

religions. Can you take a guess at the following:

% non-white people in Britain

% of people living here (Britain) who were not born here

2,380 respondents answered the question. 982 respondents skipped the question

The average estimate for the percentage of non-white people in Britain was

48%

The average estimate for the percentage of people living in Britain who were

not born here is 47% (See Table 10 and Figures 10)

Table 10 - Can you take a guess at the % non-white people in Britain and the % of

people living here (Britain) who were not born here

Figure 10 - Can you take a guess at the % non-white people in Britain and the % of

people living here (Britain) who were not born here

44

44

45

45

46

46

47

non-white not British

Estimations as percentages

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Q14. What kind of things might you see in a community where people have

different backgrounds, cultures and religions?

2,105 respondents answered this question. 1,257 respondents skipped this question.

Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to provide details of

good/positive examples and bad/negative examples.




basis.

Q.15 Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have

different values and ideas about how Britain should be. Below are some political

statements. Please rate how much you agree with each of them.

2,515 respondents provided an answer. 845 skipped the question.

In response to the statement I'd always support my country, whether it was right

or wrong

26% of respondents said they Strongly agree

36% of respondents said they Agree

17% of respondents said they Disagree

5% of respondents said they Strongly disagree

16% of respondents said I dont know

In response to the statement No one chooses his or her country of birth, so it's

foolish to be proud of it






In response to the statement The rich are too highly taxed






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In response to the statement We need to do far more to protect the environment






In response to the statement Students have to sit far too many exams






In response to the statement The legal drinking age should raised to 21






In response to the statement Migration to the UK is out of control/not being

managed properly






In response to the statement In my town, there are lots of things for young people

to do and get involved in






In response to the statement I would trust the police to deal effectively with any

problem I had


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Table 11 - Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have



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Figure 11 - Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have



Q16. Politicians and the Government are the people who make decisions affecting

all of the issues you have just considered. When you have been unhappy with

something in your local community or in this country, have you done any of the

following...

981 respondents answered the question whilst 2,379 respondents skipped this

question.

16% of respondents answered email my MP

17% of respondents answered write to my MP

11% of respondents answered meet with my MP

35% of respondents answered contact the council

8% of respondents answered sign political petitions

8% of respondents answered go on a protest march

11% of respondents answered write to a newspaper/contact press

15% of respondents answered write a blog

4% of respondents answered occupy (remain in a building/place as a way of

protesting)

11% of respondents answered give out flyers

19% of respondents answered put up posters

34% of respondents answered write about it or take action on

Facebook/Twitter

(See Table 12 and Figure 12)

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Table 12 Politicians and the Government are the people who make decisions

affecting all of the issues you have just considered. When you have been unhappy

with something in your local community or in this country, have you done any of

the following...

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Figure 12 Politicians and the Government are the people who make decisions

affecting all of the issues you have just considered. When you have been unhappy

with something in your local community or in this country, have you done any of

the following...

Question 17: If you haven't done any of these, why not?

2,039 respondents answered the question whilst 1,321 respondents skipped this

question.

21% of respondents answered that they cant be bothered

41% of respondents answered that they havent felt the need

19% of respondents answered that they wouldnt know how to

15% of respondents answered that they didnt know they could

20% of respondents answered that they didnt think it would make a

difference

5% of respondents answered that they have tried before and nothing

happened

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11% of respondents answered that no-one listens to them

12% of respondents answered that they would feel scared

9% of respondents answered that they would want to find somebody else

you thought the same way as them

15% of respondents answered that they think they would in the future


Table 13 If you haven't done any of these, why not?

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Figure 13 If you haven't done any of these, why not?

Q18. Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious

identity is an example of racism. People who follow the religion of Islam are called

Muslims. What do you know about Islam? Please state whether you agree with the

statements below:

2,375 respondents answered the question whilst 985 respondents skipped this

question.

Islam is a peaceful religion

23% of respondents answered that they agreed

26% of respondents answered that partly agreed

8% of respondents answered that they partly disagreed

6% of respondents answered that they disagreed

36% of respondents answered that they didnt know

Muslims believe in the same God as Christians




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Muslim women are oppressed






Islam encourages terrorism/extremism






There are poor relations between Muslims and non-Muslims in England






Muslims are taking over England






Forced marriages are common in Islam






Muslims contribute positively to society in England







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Table 14 Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious



statements below:

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Figure 14 Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious



statements below:

Q19. Do you know what racism is? Racism is treating somebody badly because of...

[tick all that apply]


question.

95% of respondents answered skin colour

81% of respondents answered religion

30% of respondents answered disability

21% of respondents answered hair colour

20% of respondents answered sex

59% of respondents answered nationality

66% of respondents answered culture

24% of respondents answered sexuality


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Table 15: Do you know what racism is? Racism is treating somebody badly because

of... [tick all that apply]

Q15. Do you know what racism is? Racism is treating somebody badly because of...

[tick all that apply]

43

Q20. The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views about

Britain. Do you know what the letters EDL stand for?

2,355 respondents answered the question. 1,005 respondents skipped this question.

16% of respondents answered yes

84% of respondents answered no


Table 16 The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views

about Britain. Do you know what the letters EDL stand for?

Figure 16 The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views


Q21. The EDL stands for English Defence League. What do you think they are trying

to defend England from?

1,498 respondents answered this question. 1,864 respondents skipped the question.

Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to answer this question.




basis.

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Q22 Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?


question.

82% of respondents answered that they I don't know anything about them

7% of respondents answered that they have heard people talking about them

positively

7% of respondents answered that they have heard people talking about them

negatively

8% of respondents answered that they have seen them on TV

6% of respondents answered that they have seen them in newspapers

3% of respondents answered that they their friends support the messages of

the EDL

1% of respondents answered that they have been to an EDL demonstration

3% of respondents answered that they have seen an EDL demonstration

5% of respondents answered that they have seen EDL-related graffiti or

messages

3% of respondents answered that they support the messages of the EDL

1% of respondents answered that they are involved in the EDL online

4% of respondents answered that they seen things from the EDL on Facebook

and other social media sites

2% of respondents answered that they have friends who are involved in the

EDL

2% of respondents answered that members of their family are involved in the

EDL

2% of respondents answered that they I have taken action/protested against

the EDL


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Table 17 Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?

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Figure 17 Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?

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Q23. What do you think are the main reasons that a person may join the EDL?


question.

11% of respondents answered that if they have racist ideas and attitudes

3% of respondents answered that if they think it is exciting to get involved in

street protests

12% of respondents answered that if they feel they have very few

opportunities in the UK now and in the future

18% of respondents answered that if they are fearful/unhappy with the

number of immigrants in the country

18% of respondents answered that if they are unhappy with multiculturalism

in the country

20% of respondents answered that if they feel the country is under threat

from terrorism

12% of respondents answered that if they do not agree with Islam

15% of respondents answered that if they are being treated unfairly in

society

9% of respondents answered that if they do not have any trust in/do not

agree with the current government

8% of respondents answered that if they have friends who are involved

5% of respondents answered that if they want to make friends

47% of respondents answered that they dont know


Table 18 What do you think are the main reasons that a person may join the EDL?

48

Figure 18 What do you think are the main reasons that a person may join the

EDL?

Q24. Thinking a little bit more about why people join groups like the EDL: do you

think there could be any positive/negative things about belonging to the EDL?



positives and negatives.




basis.

49

Q.25 Have you ever considered getting involved with groups like the EDL?

2,049 respondents provided an answer, 1,311 skipped the question.

2% of respondents said Definitely

7% of respondents said Possibly

43% of respondents said Unsure

47% of respondents said Definitely not


Table 19 - Have you ever considered getting involved with groups like the EDL?

Figure 19 - Have you ever considered getting involved with groups like the EDL?

50

Q26. An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you...

1,787 respondents provided an answer. 1,573 skipped the question.

11% of respondents said definitely go along

7% of respondents said actively get involved & encourage others to go

13% of respondents said probably go along

29% of respondents said try and find out more

17% of respondents said chat about it with friends

9% of respondents said talk about it on Facebook or other social networking

sites

32% of respondents said stay well clear

9% of respondents said feel frightened

4% of respondents said join a counter demonstration

10% of respondents said try to stop it from happening


Table 20 - An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you

51

Figure 20 - An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you

Q27. Your friend has written a joke against immigrants as their Facebook status.

Would you...


10% of respondents said Like the status

5% of respondents said Copy & paste the status

4% of respondents said Comment in agreement with the status

35% of respondents said Ignore it

13% of respondents said Argue against it

16% of respondents said send him a message asking them to delete it

22% of respondents said Report it

3% of respondents said Hide the friend

8% of respondents said Unfriend them

14% of respondents said Do nothing

23% of respondents said I dont use Facebook


52

Table 21 - Your friend has written a joke against immigrants as their Facebook

status. Would you...

53

Figure 21 Your friend has written a joke against immigrants as their Facebook

status. Would you...

Q28. You are in your dining hall. Paul is a white British classmate. He angrily shouts

to Helena, a student with Asian heritage, "Go back to where you come from & stop

stealing our jobs". Would you...


7% of respondents said laugh along with Paul

19% of respondents said talk to Paul afterwards about what he said

21% of respondents said do nothing - you wouldn't want to get involved

5% of respondents said do nothing - you'd be scared to say anything

37% of respondents said tell a teacher

38% of respondents said stand up for Helena

9% of respondents said leave the dining hall

35% of respondents said check later on if Helena is ok

16% of respondents said feel confident the school would take action


54

Table 22 - You are in your dining hall. Paul is a white British classmate. He angrily

shouts to Helena, a student with Asian heritage, "Go back to where you come from

& stop stealing our jobs". Would you...

Figure 22 You are in your dining hall. Paul is a white British classmate. He angrily

shouts to Helena, a student with Asian heritage, "Go back to where you come from

& stop stealing our jobs". Would you...

55

Q29. Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire! We have asked

you about a wide range of issues. Now can you tell us

Has your school ever talked to you about any of the things this survey has been

discussing?

If so when? (in Assembly, lessons, one-to-one etc)

If not, are there any issues that you would like to talk about in school?

1,686 respondents answered the question. 1,676 skipped the question.

Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to provide answers to each

of the three sub-questions.




basis.

56

Survey 2 results (November 2012 March 2014)

Survey questions were amended in November 2012 to reduce the burden of

completion for participants and to better reflect some of the key issues raised during

the first six months of classroom interventions including what Education Workers

perceived to be a lack of understanding about the religion of Islam.

During this period, the survey was completed by 2,638 young people in preparation

for their participation in tailored anti-racism workshops delivered by Show Racism

the Red Card. The results from each question, together with the response rate is

presented below.

Q1. What is your age and sex?

All 2,638 respondents answered the questions.

Less than 1% of respondents were aged 10

5% of respondents were 11



18% of respondents to the survey were 14

4% were 15

6% of respondents to the survey were aged 16+.

(see Table 23 and Figure 23)

49.73% of respondents to survey 1 were male

50.27% were female


Table 23 - What is your age?

Table 24 What is your sex?

57

Figure 23 - What is your age?

58

Figure 24 - What is your sex?

Questions two, three, four & five (What is the name of your school? Do you have

any pets? What pets do you have? & What was the name of your first pet?) were

used as markers or identifiers to enable deeper analysis of responses whilst

maintaining the anonymity of respondents. The presence of such questions could

enable investigation into trends at a regional or individual school level and an

isolated analysis of an individuals response to the full survey. Whilst Show Racism

the Red Card recognise that there may be further, very valuable data which could be

drawn from such analysis, this was not part of the original research brief and is

therefore not included within this report.

Q6. How would you describe your ethnicity?


5% of respondents described their ethnicity as Asian or British Asian.

6% described themselves as Black or Black British.

Less than 1% of respondents to the survey described themselves as Chinese

or other ethnic group

5% described themselves as Mixed.

83% of respondents described their ethnicity as White. (see Table 25 &

Figure 25)

59

Table 25 - How would you describe your ethnicity?

Figure 25 How would you describe your ethnicity?

Q7. Which of the following best describes your religious background?

2,393 students responded to this question, 245 students skipped this question

2% of respondents answered Agnostic

9% of respondents said Athiest

Less than 1% of respondents said Buddhist

38% of respondents said Christian

Less than 1% of respondents said Hindu

3% of respondents said they would rather not say.

8% of respondents said Jewish

5% of respondents said Muslim

Less than 1% said Sikh

40% of respondents said that they had no religion


60

Table 26 Which of the following best describes your religious background?

Figure 26 - Which of the following best describes your religious background?

61

Q8. Which social media sites do you use?

2,434 respondents answered the question. 204 skipped the question.

81% of respondents use Facebook

48% of respondents use Twitter

13% of respondents use Tumblr

3% of respondents use Myspace

37% of respondents use Google+

3% of respondents use Pinterest

3% of respondents use Bebo

10% of respondents do not use any of the social media sites listed


Table 27 - Which social media sites do you use?

62

Figure 27 - Which social media sites do you use?

Q9. Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving your

goals in the future? (You can select up to 4 answers)


40% of respondents said Not having or earning enough money.

43% of respondents said A lack of job opportunities.

29% of respondents said Jobs being taken by foreign workers.

12% of respondents said A lack of support from my family.

17% of respondents said Not enough support from my school.

33% of respondents said Being unsure what I want to do as a job.

11% of respondents said Not having positive role models or people to look

up to.

21% of respondents said Unable to afford further education.

17% of respondents said I dont think any of these things will stop me.

9% of respondents said I dont have any goals.


63

Table 28 - Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving

your goals in the future? (You can select up to 4 answers)

64

Figure 28 Do you think that any of the following might stop you from achieving

your goals in the future? (You can select up to 4 answers)

Q10. Which of these newspapers do you see at home?


question.

12% of respondents answered the Daily Express

10% of respondents answered the Guardian

2% of respondents answered the Financial Times

51% of respondents answered the Sun

15% of respondents answered the Daily Star

7% of respondents answered the Observer

3% of respondents answered the Independent

3% of respondents answered the Times

26% of respondents answered the Daily Mail

21% of respondents answered the Mirror

3% of respondents answered the i

65

4% of respondents answered the Telegraph

11% of respondents answered the Metro

24% of respondents answered a local newspaper

25% of respondents didnt see any newspapers in their home


Table 29 Which of these newspapers do you see at home?

66

Figure 29 Which of these newspapers do you see at home?

67

Q11. Tell us something you really like about living here and something you that

you dislike.

2461 respondents answered this question. 177 skipped this question






basis.

Q12. Can you take a guess at the percentage of the British population who are

Muslim? Can you take a guess at the percentage of non-white people in Britain?

2418 respondents answered this question. 220 skipped this question.

The average estimate for the percentage of the British population who are

Muslim is 36%

The average estimate for the percentage of non-white people in Britain was

46%


Table 30 - Can you take a guess at the percentage of the British population who are

Muslim? Can you take a guess at the percentage of non-white people in Britain?

68

Figure 30 - Can you take a guess at the percentage of the British population who

are Muslim? Can you take a guess at the percentage of non-white people in

Britain?

05

101520253035404550

Muslim Non-white

Estimate in percentage

Q13. Do you think there are good/positive things about living in a multicultural

country like England?

2,043 respondents answered this question. 595 skipped this question.


good/positive things about living in England.




basis.

Q14. What do you think are the bad/negative things about living in a multicultural

country like England?

1,984 respondents answered this question. 654 skipped this question


bad/negative things about living in England.




basis.

69

Q15. Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have


statements, please rate how much you agree with each of them:

2,268 respondents answered this question. 370 skipped this question

Id always support my country whether it was right or not

17% strongly agreed with this statement

32% agreed

21% disagreed

7% strongly disagreed

23% selected dont know

No-one chooses his/her country of Birth so its foolish to be proud of it

9% strongly agreed with this statement

17% agreed

26% disagreed

20% strongly disagreed

28% selected dont know


Table 31 - Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have


statements, please rate how much you agree with each of them

70

Figure 31 - Our political system is made up of lots of different parties who all have


statements, please rate how much you agree with each of them

Q16. When you have been unhappy with something in your local community or in

this country, have you done any of the following:


question.

6% of respondents answered Email/write to my MP

3% of respondents answered Meet mi MP

11% of respondents answered Contact the council

4% of respondents answered Sign political petition

4% of respondents answered Go on a protest march

3% of respondents answered Write to a newspaper/contact press

4% of respondents answered Write a blog

2% of respondents answered Occupation (remain in a building/place as a

way of protesting)

4% of respondents answered Give out flyers

5% of respondents answered Put up posters

14% of respondents answered Write about it or take action on

Facebook/Twitter

72% of respondents answered None of these


71

Table 32 - When you have been unhappy with something in your local community

or in this country, have you done any of the following

Figure 32 - When you have been unhappy with something in your local community

or in this country, have you done any of the following

72

Q17. If you havent done any of these, why not?


question.

30% of respondents answered Cant be bothered

40% of respondents answered I havent felt the need

15% of respondents answered I wouldnt know how to

9% of respondents answered I dont know if I could

24% of respondents answered I dont think it would make a difference

2% of respondents answered I have tried to before and nothing happened

7% of respondents answered Nobody listens to me

7% of respondents answered I would feel scared

2% of respondents answered I wouldnt want to find somebody else who felt

the same way as me

12% of respondents answered I think I would in future


Table 33 - If you havent done any of these, why not?

73

Figure 33 - If you havent done any of these, why not?

Q18: Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious



statements below:


question.

Islam encourages terrorism/extremism






There are poor relations between Muslims/Non-Muslims in England



74




Muslims are taking over England






Muslims contribute positively to society in England







Table 34 Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious



statements below:

75

Figure 34 Treating somebody badly because of their religious beliefs or religious



statements below:

76

Q19. Take a look at the statements below and decide whether they are true or

false:


question.

Asylum seekers and immigrants are stealing our jobs

60% of respondents answered true

40% of respondents answered false

Immigrants are all here illegally



Newspapers can contribute to racism



Racism is taken more seriously when it is towards a black or Asian person than

when it's towards a white person



Stereotypes can be dangerous




77

Table 35 - Take a look at the statements below, decide whether they are true or

false

Figure 35 - Take a look at the statements below, decide whether they are true or

false

78

Q20. Do you know what racism is? (Tick all that apply)


96% of respondents associate racism with skin colour

87% of respondents associate racism with religion

31% of respondents associate racism with disability

22% of respondents associate racism with hair colour

22% of respondents associate racism with sex

72% of respondents associate racism with nationality

77% of respondents associate racism with culture

28% of respondents associate racism with sexuality


Table 36 - Do you know what racism is? (Tick all that apply)

79

Figure 36 - Do you know what racism is? (Tick all that apply)

Q21. The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views about

Britain. Do you know what the letters EDL stand for?


37% of respondents answered that they know what the letters EDL stand for

63% of respondents answered that they do not know what the letters EDL

stand for


Table 37 The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views


80

Figure 37 - The EDL are a street movement group that have very particular views


Q22. The EDL stands for English Defence League. What do you think they are trying

to defend England from?


Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to answer this question.




basis.

Q23. Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?


68% of respondents answered I dont know anything about them

9% of respondents answered I have seen them on TV

5% of respondents answered I have heard people talking about them

positively

5% of respondents answered I have heard people talking about them

negatively

3% of respondents answered I have seen them in the newspaper

2% of respondents answered I have seen EDL demonstrations

2% of respondents answered I have seen EDL related graffiti or messages

2% of respondents answered I have things from the EDL on Facebook and

other social media sites

1% of respondents answered I support the message of the EDL

81

1% of respondents answered Members of my family are involved in the EDL

1% of respondents answered I have friends who are involved in the EDL

1% of respondents answered I have been on an EDL demonstration

1% of respondents answered I have taken action/protested against the EDL

demonstration

Less than 1% of respondents answered I am involved in the EDL online


Table 38 - Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?

82

Figure 38 - Do you have any experiences of the English Defence League (EDL)?

Q24. What do you think are the main reasons a person may join the EDL?

652 respondents answered the question. 1,986 skipped the question.

8% of respondents answered They want to make friends

28% of respondents answered They are fearful/unhappy with the number of

immigrants in the country

83

6% of respondents answered They feel they have very few opportunities in

the UK now or in the future

3% of respondents answered They have friends who are involved

11% of respondents answered They are unhappy with multiculturalism in the

country

9% of respondents answered They feel the country is under threat from

terrorism

3% of respondents answered They do not have any trust in/do not agree

with the current government

5% of respondents answered They do not agree with Islam

3% of respondents answered They feel they are being treated unfairly in

society

8% of respondents answered They have racist ideas and attitudes

2% of respondents answered They think its exciting to get involved in street

protests

15% of respondents answered I dont know


Table 39 - What do you think are the main reasons a person may join the EDL?

84

Figure 39 - What do you think are the main reasons a person may join the EDL?

Q25. Thinking a little bit more about why people join groups like the EDL: do you

think there could be any positive/negative things about belonging to the EDL?

461 respondents answered this question. 2,177 respondents skipped this question.


positives and negatives.




basis.

85

Q26. Have you ever considered getting involved in groups like the EDL?


7% of respondents answered Definitely

13% of respondents answered Possibly

25% of respondents were unsure

55% of respondents answered Definitely not


Table 40 - Have you ever considered getting involved in groups like the EDL?

Figure 40 - Have you ever considered getting involved in groups like the EDL?

86

Q27. Your friend on Facebook has written a joke against immigrants as their status.

Would you?


15% of respondents answered that they would Like the status

5% of respondents answered that they would Copy and paste the status

6% of respondents answered that they would Comment in agreement with

the status

38% of respondents answered that they would Ignore it

10% of respondents answered that they would Argue against it

13% of respondents answered that they would Send a message asking him to

delete it

15% of respondents answered that they would Report it

4% of respondents answered that they would Hide the friend from their

newsfeed

7% of respondents answered that they would Unfriend him

23% of respondents answered that they would Do nothing

15% of respondents answered that they Do not use Facebook


Table 41 - Your friend on Facebook has written a joke against immigrants as their

status. Would you?

87

Figure 41 - Your friend on Facebook has written a joke against immigrants as their

status. Would you?

Q28. An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you?


8% of respondents answered that they would Definitely go along

2% of respondents answered that they would Actively get involved and

encourage others to go

6% of respondents answered that they would Probably go along

17% of respondents answered that they would Try and find out more

9% of respondents answered that they would Chat about it with friends

3% of respondents answered that they would Talk about it on Facebook and

other social network sites

39% of respondents answered that they would Stay well clear

4% of respondents answered that they would Feel frightened

Less than 1% answered that they would Join a counter demonstration

88

10% of respondents answered that they would Try to stop it from

happening


Table 42 - An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you?

89

Figure 42 - An EDL march has been arranged in your town. Would you?

Q29. Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire, we have asked

you about a wide range of issues. Has your school ever talked to you about the

things we have been discussing?


38% of respondents answered Yes

25% of respondents answered No

37% of respondents answered Not sure


90

Table 43 - Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire, we have

asked you about a wide range of issues. Has your school ever talked to you about

the things we have been discussing?

Figure 43 - Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire, we have

asked you about a wide range of issues. Has your school ever talked to you about

the things we have been discussing?

Q30. When were these issues discussed?


56% of respondents answered In assembly

71% of respondents answered In lessons

7% of respondents answered In a one to one


Table 44 - When were these issues discussed?

91

Figure 44 - When were these issues discussed?

Q31. Are there any issues you would like to talk about in school?


Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to provide details.




basis.

Q32. Finally, do you have any questions that you would like Show Racism the Red

Card to answer when we visit your school?


Respondents were provided with a free text box in which to provide details.




basis.

92

AKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Show Racism the Red Card would like to thank the following individuals and

organisations for their participation and assistance with the initial research activity

and the subsequent compilation of this report.

All 5, 945 young people from across the UK who gave up their time to

complete the survey with honesty and maturity.

Over 80 participating schools that embraced the opportunity to engage their

students in safe, constructive discussions on the issue of racism and

recognised the significance of this study.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) for funding

such a valuable and comprehensive programme of work and for guidance in

the development of this report.

Dr Paul Jackson, Senior Lecturer in Modern History at the University of

Northampton who generously gave of his time and expertise to write an

accompanying narrative on the results of the research activity in addition to

supporting other strands of the overall funded project.

All local authority partners that provided access to schools and promoted

participation in the entire programme including this research project.

Neil Shashoua and Stephanie Cole of Trapeze Consulting; responsible for

completing the external evaluation of the project.

Show Racism the Red Card Education Workers and staff Laura Pidcock, Lizz

Bennett, Sarah Soyei, Kate Hollinshead, Paul Mortimer, Manisha Tailor, Steve

Goodsell, Laura Watkins, Wendy Watts, James Kingett, Gavin Sutherland,

Paul Kearns, Ged Grebby, Osei Sankofa, Anwar Uddin, Dominic Healy, Rose

Greenfield & Ryan Cullen.

Documents

Show Racism the Red Card - 'the Attitudes of Young People