Is institutionalised racism or the lack of anti-racism policies the reason behind the lack of
social mobility within the BAME communities in the UK?
An issue of great concern is the racial inequalities of the UK, and evaluating whether the lack of
social mobility is due to institutionalised racism or anti-racism policies for BAME (Black, Asian and
Minority Ethnics) communities’ in society, as well as their collective position in social hierarchy. In
the 2021 census, white people made the majority of population, with 48.7 million people (81.7%)
were white out of the 59.6 million people nationwide1. After decades of debates on the rate of
progression or regression of the BAME groups, the possible reasons as to why certain values are
often existing within affecting social institutions are not explained with exact causality. In order
to understand BAME communities' journeys and the historical and current arrangement of the
social hierarchy, it is imperative to understand the key terms associated with this topic and the
way these factors affect individuals and ethnic groups. It can be argued through official reports
that minority ethnic groups are limited compared to their white counterparts in different social
establishments. By providing evidence of the multiple influences and possible explanations
involved in the progression, history and experiences of the BAME communities and BAME
individuals within the UK, it can be evaluated whether institutionalised racism in social
institutions is the genesis for the lack of movement for BAME people, or is it due to the lack of
recently developed anti-racism policies overall and their lack of effectiveness which they hold to
endorsing an equal society.
Social mobility is “the movement in time of individuals, families, or other social units between
positions of varying advantage in the system of social stratification of a society.”2 Social mobility
allows opportunities for individuals to advance within a society in terms of economic, political
and social hierarchy. However, reports investigating social institutions have found a paradigm of
discriminatory values, such as the education system where BAME students are
“underrepresented in higher education in the UK,”3 prohibiting them from moving to higher-level
fields that require degree level education. Other institutions in the social sector, such as
education and employment, have also shown unacceptable progression of social mobility within
the social sector, including the police4 who were accused of prejudice after the deaths and racial
attacks of multiple different BAME people around the country. Similarly, the employment sector
evidenced the discriminatory action against BAME people, when a national survey found a
significant percent of employees of colour said they felt overlooked for a promotion5, being
unable to raise their social mobility location in the hierarchy. Multiple institutions have shown
discriminatory values, and there are multiple causes for that, which have been evidenced and
aim to be changed by new legislations and policies.
Racial discrimination is present in many forms, however the most ingrained form to be
combated in modern society, as well as a possible reason for the lack of social mobility in the
BAME communities, is the ideology of “institutionalised racism.” In order to understand the
concept of racial discrimination in this abstract form, these neologisms were created to describe
1
Population of England and Wales - GOV.UK Ethnicity facts and figures
2
Social Mobility - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics
3
https://rgs-ibg..wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1111/area.12627
4
The Macpherson Report: Twenty-two years on - Home Affairs Committee - House of Commons
5
CIPD Race inclusion reports. Report 3 – Ensuring equality of career progression opportunities
social mobility within the BAME communities in the UK?
An issue of great concern is the racial inequalities of the UK, and evaluating whether the lack of
social mobility is due to institutionalised racism or anti-racism policies for BAME (Black, Asian and
Minority Ethnics) communities’ in society, as well as their collective position in social hierarchy. In
the 2021 census, white people made the majority of population, with 48.7 million people (81.7%)
were white out of the 59.6 million people nationwide1. After decades of debates on the rate of
progression or regression of the BAME groups, the possible reasons as to why certain values are
often existing within affecting social institutions are not explained with exact causality. In order
to understand BAME communities' journeys and the historical and current arrangement of the
social hierarchy, it is imperative to understand the key terms associated with this topic and the
way these factors affect individuals and ethnic groups. It can be argued through official reports
that minority ethnic groups are limited compared to their white counterparts in different social
establishments. By providing evidence of the multiple influences and possible explanations
involved in the progression, history and experiences of the BAME communities and BAME
individuals within the UK, it can be evaluated whether institutionalised racism in social
institutions is the genesis for the lack of movement for BAME people, or is it due to the lack of
recently developed anti-racism policies overall and their lack of effectiveness which they hold to
endorsing an equal society.
Social mobility is “the movement in time of individuals, families, or other social units between
positions of varying advantage in the system of social stratification of a society.”2 Social mobility
allows opportunities for individuals to advance within a society in terms of economic, political
and social hierarchy. However, reports investigating social institutions have found a paradigm of
discriminatory values, such as the education system where BAME students are
“underrepresented in higher education in the UK,”3 prohibiting them from moving to higher-level
fields that require degree level education. Other institutions in the social sector, such as
education and employment, have also shown unacceptable progression of social mobility within
the social sector, including the police4 who were accused of prejudice after the deaths and racial
attacks of multiple different BAME people around the country. Similarly, the employment sector
evidenced the discriminatory action against BAME people, when a national survey found a
significant percent of employees of colour said they felt overlooked for a promotion5, being
unable to raise their social mobility location in the hierarchy. Multiple institutions have shown
discriminatory values, and there are multiple causes for that, which have been evidenced and
aim to be changed by new legislations and policies.
Racial discrimination is present in many forms, however the most ingrained form to be
combated in modern society, as well as a possible reason for the lack of social mobility in the
BAME communities, is the ideology of “institutionalised racism.” In order to understand the
concept of racial discrimination in this abstract form, these neologisms were created to describe
1
Population of England and Wales - GOV.UK Ethnicity facts and figures
2
Social Mobility - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics
3
https://rgs-ibg..wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1111/area.12627
4
The Macpherson Report: Twenty-two years on - Home Affairs Committee - House of Commons
5
CIPD Race inclusion reports. Report 3 – Ensuring equality of career progression opportunities
