Resources: Quick guide to dealing with racism

1. Most race hate crimes are not reported. That is a powerful understatement. The police recorded 50,000 racially or religiously motivated hate crimes last year. The interview-based British Crime Survey, which picks up crimes not reported to the police, suggests that there were 260,000 such offences last year. Whatever the statistics say, racially motivated physical and verbal abuse is a fact of everyday life. With tensions rising over the war on terror, and extremists stoking up hostility to immigrants, there is no reason to assume things are getting any better.

2. Mutual distrust and suspicion between racial groups tends to be based on ignorance. If there is little direct contact between groups, mistrust can be exploited by political extremists, leading to violent attacks built on high passions and unfounded rumours. Work to increase mutual understanding simply by bringing communities together.