Thanks no7, you expressed it better than I could ever hope to, and I agree with every word.I appreciate that you didn't mean it as i perceived it, but that is my point and also maybe why Chilcs deleted a post of yours. I say to my pale, white, blond wife that 'white' people just cannot see the casual racism that is all around us. She does it too without realising and i have to pull her up on it. I also think it is a generational thing, as in the 70s/80s it was everywhere. Even the TV was biased towards it (think Jim Davidson and 'chalkie' character, black and white minstrels, the golly wog etc).
Growing up as a half Indian, half Italian person in a white world in the 70s and 80s, I did become accustomed to it, but thankfully it is less prevalent than it is now. This is where I dislike the Trumps of the world mainly. They have re-nomalised bad behaviour and casual racism. They use their power and for what of a better term, white privilege to put across their agenda. The implications are always that white is good and any other combination is bad.
With respect to the integration into the community I am surprisingly 100% behind you and others. No area should be a 'no go' area, for whites or even non whites. My father is a Sikh, though he left India in the 60s, cut his hair, drank alcohol and then got an Italian girl pregnant in London. They then got married and moved to Italy for a few years, where I was made (lol yep I need a made in Italy stamp on me), then came back to Bournemouth. Maybe it was because I was a mixture of two very diverse cultures, but we had a very 'British' upbringing. I would in my teens visit cousins in Birmingham and was horrified how insular and not integrated at all they were - I could see the issues we have now. I am all for remembering your roots, embracing them and being proud of them, but also believe 'when in Rome'.
By my family, I have often been told that I am far too right wing in some of my views for the colour of my skin, so I am no 'politically correct' leftie, I just feel that in 2025 we need to realise that black/white/brown etc are all the same AND equal. It is getting better, but not there yet.
One of the best books that really brought it all home to me from a perspective of a black person was Michael Holding's excellent book "Why we kneel and how we rise". So much in there and I recommend it to any one.
As the words of the late Jo Cox in my signature say, there is far more that unites us than divides us. Every human being on earth shares 99.9% of the same DNA, and we all have the same basic needs, and similar hopes and fears.
) on here. I also don't feel anyone left is outright racist.