•
Most enquiries and complaints were resolved, or assistance was provided
(82%) – a small proportion were either withdrawn by the complainant (16%)
or were unable to be resolved through the Commission (2%)
•
Race-related reasons (race, colour, national and ethnic origin) were the
second most reported grounds for discrimination (after disability).
As noted above, these statistics may not fully reflect the prevalence of racism and
discrimination towards migrants as many do not report racial discrimination due to
(Hollinsworth, 2006):
•
Lack of recognition of certain behaviours or systems as racism/racist
•
Lack of understanding about where and how to report racism
•
Fear of retribution and of being punished for complaining by those in
authority (especially if the incident occurred in school or in the workplace)
•
Uncertainty if the incident was in fact racist or if there would be any
consequences for racist behaviour
•
Unwillingness to undergo an unpleasant process.
There is, therefore, a need to examine the nature of racism and discrimination in
Aotearoa New Zealand.
2.2.
Racism theories and frameworks
It is well-established in the literature that race is not a biological fact (Bridges, 2013;
Dein, 2006). There is insufficient biological difference amongst humans to support
the notion of distinct races and that the human population, overall, is very mixed
(Stephan & Stephan, 2000). However, humans have attributed the term ‘race’ with
meaning (Templeton, 2013). Throughout this report we refer to race as purely a
social construct used to categorise people.
2.2.1.
Theories of racism
Racism is widely researched internationally, particularly in multicultural societies
where widespread tensions exist between dominant ethnic groups and ethnic
minorities. Mills and Unsworth (2018, p. 314) define racism as “the beliefs, practices,
or structural systems… that function to oppress racial groups.” This oppression
serves to create and maintain socioeconomic divisions between racial groups by
operating in multiple ways:
•
Individual racism: Person-to-person interactions that reflect individuals’
racist attitudes, beliefs and behaviours, based in conscious and unconscious
prejudices that are connected to historical events and reinforced by systemic
racism (Henry & Tator, 2009).
www.malatest-intl.com
Drivers of racism – March 2021
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