The latest research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation into housing in the UK paints a bleak picture. It highlighted that structural and institutional discrimination has so robustly taken hold that it has spread its tentacles across our society like bindweed, making it difficult (but not impossible) to eradicate.
Despite laws and regulations in place to prevent discrimination, many black and ethnic minority people in the UK still face barriers when it comes to accessing safe and affordable housing. It’s something we know housing associations are wanting to tackle, but when it’s so entrenched in an organisation, it’s truly difficult to unpick from the inside.
The problem
Racism and discrimination in housing is impacted by a variety of interconnected factors. Labour market inequalities, the design of the social security system and the immigration system all serve to exclude black and ethnic minority people. For example, the immigration system excludes a disproportionate number of black and ethnic minority people from social housing and social security, contributing to problems with housing affordability, overcrowding, poverty and destitution, while also fostering direct discrimination within the housing system, including from landlords.
The impacts of these factors are worsened by wider prejudice and discrimination against black and ethnic minority communities. Studies have shown that people with “ethnic-sounding” names are less likely to be offered viewings or to be approved for tenancies than people with “white-sounding” names.
If we look at inequality within the senior ranks of most housing associations or local authorities, we see a dearth of people from black and ethnic minority communities. These organisations, despite espousing great intentions, continue to perpetuate inequality with few senior leaders at the top.
What can be done?
We know we need to do much more to understand the impact of these seemingly isolated aspects of legislation and develop bolder joined up policies to tackle them. Isn’t this a core part of levelling up? Understanding, addressing and rectifying policies that inhibit people from ever being able to progress in their lives is a critical first step. I am just not sure there is the will to take this bold joined up approach and create the society we all say we want. I remain hopeful. To address racism in housing in the UK, there are a number of steps that need to be taken. These include strengthening and enforcing anti-discrimination laws, providing more affordable housing options, promoting diversity and inclusion in all aspects of the housing market, and addressing systemic inequalities that contribute to housing insecurity.
However, we can all do something straight away. The first step is to acknowledge that we live in a structurally discriminatory society. I believe we are dealing with a three-dimensional problem from a two-dimensional point of view. Let me explain…
Reframing the problem
If I am a senior leader in an organisation and I ask myself the question, “am I racist/misogynistic/homophobic?” and the honest answer is, “no”, then I don’t believe on a personal level that I contribute to the problem. If I am then asked the same question about my organisation, my automatic answer would too be “no”. You see, as a senior leader, so much of my identity and how I think about myself is tied up within the organisation I am in I become the embodiment of the group consciously or unconsciously. Therefore as I have already established that I am not racist/misogynistic/homophobic, ergo, institutional racism does not exist within my organisation.
Senior leaders are unable to separate criticism against the organisation (i.e. the policies, procedures, processes and behaviours), from criticism about themselves on a personal level. The area that they are failing to factor in to allow them to see things more clearly is their choosing to ignore independent reports confirming that institutional discrimination is a reality in their organisation. This is a personal emotional response. However, on an intellectual level, they may feel able to accept that institutional racism happens in other areas where they don’t have ‘skin in the game’ or put the blame on a few ‘bad eggs’.
This wilful ignorance cannot see that institutional racism and individual racism can exist simultaneously but must be dealt with differently.
For example, I can provide an individual with anti-racist training and talk to them about unconscious bias and the impact of micro aggressions to help them to change their personal behaviour. But this does not tackle the way that institutions were formed and how, from the outset, people not like ‘us’, (largely white, male and privileged) were treated differently and less favourably. All our structures need to be reviewed in an intentional, non-defensive proactive way.Only by doing this can we begin to genuinely create psychological safety and engender a workplace where people feel a sense of belonging. By working together to address these issues, we can create a more equitable and just housing system for everyone in the UK where people can live with dignity and respect.
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Lubna Haq is a Director within the leadership consulting team at NSCG.
Learn more about Lubna here. |
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