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ETHNIC MINORITIES AND POLITICS: The British Electoral System
Muhammad Anwar
November 2009

Britain is a multi-ethnic society. Ethnic minorities now make up ten percent of the population and have the right to vote and stand for elections. Their participation in the electoral system gives them the opportunity to express their views. Their representation in politics is crucial to achieve equality of opportunity in the political system, as well as in other fields. Due to their concentration in certain areas, ethnic minority participation is becoming increasingly significant. This book examines how they have exercised their political rights and changing trends of political participation among ethnic minorities, building on the author’s previous work.

The book covers immigration and settlement patterns in Britain and analyses registration levels, turnout patterns, voting behaviours and attitudes to the political process. It discusses election issues, attitudes towards race relations, under-representation, and suggests the way forward. It concludes that there is progress but Britain has a long way to go in providing equality for ethnic minorities in the decision-making process.

The book would interest academics, students, political parties, political activists, those in the field of race relations, the media and the general public concerned with race, ethnicity and politics. It would also appeal to readers in other countries in similar situations.

Paperback: 216 pages

Publisher: LAP Lambert Academic Publishing

ISBN-10: 383831901X

ISBN-13: 978-3838319018  

Flyer(PDF Document) 


Ethnic Minority Youth Crime in Birmingham: Prevention and Good Practice
Muhammad Anwar and Sameera Tahira Ahmed
November 2005

With the recent ethnic riots in Birmingham it is no surprise that a new report by researchers at the University of Warwick declares Birmingham to be a leading city on ethnic minority youth crime - the surprise is that they mean Birmingham is leading the way in innovation in its design of programmes to prevent ethnic minority youth crime. However the report notes that the schemes only touch the lives of a few hundred such young people and calls for this work to be extended to serve thousands rather than just hundreds. The report also calls for more co-ordination of effort and for real consultation with young people.

The report welcomes the recognition of Birmingham agencies that perceived high levels of ethnic minority youth crime are really the result of stark geographic realities. Ethnic minorities are disproportionately represented in inner city areas (half the city's Afro-Caribbean population and 70% of the Asian population are in six wards Handsworth, Soho, Aston, Ladywood, Sandwell, & Sparkbrook) and the ethnic minority population is much younger than the white population (50% of ethnic minorities are under 29 compared with 37% of whites). Social conditions in the city also present particular challenges. Afro-Caribbean pupils are 4-6 times more likely to be excluded from school at a younger age for fewer and less serious offences than white pupils and ethnic minorities face much higher unemployment. Black African and South Asian men are twice as likely to be unemployed as white men (35% of Pakistani men and 42% of Bangladeshi men were unemployed).


Muslims in Prison: Challenge and Change in Britain and France
James A. Beckford, Danièle Joly and Farhad Khosrokhavar
October 2005

The authors have based their findings upon original sociological research into the different responses of British and French authorities to the increasing numbers of Muslims in prison. Interviews with inmates and prison staff in various prisons show that Britain and France make sharply different provisions of the practice of Islam. The well-established practice of Christian chaplaincy in British prisons has been so well adapted to the needs of Muslims that Islam is becoming institutionalised and cemented into the structure of prisons. By contrast, French prisons provide relatively few opportunities for Muslim prisoners to practice their religion under the leadership of qualified Imams. Consequently, varieties of do-it-yourself Islam and of Muslim extremism flourish unofficially on the margins of French prisons. The book's conclusions point to the different policy implications of the British and French ways of responding to Muslim prisoners.

October 2005 - 304pp

ISBN: 1403998310

Published by Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke.


book cover