Are many people from the UK culturally intolerant?

Question

Although a generalization, it's an observation. From some points of view given on Yahoo!Answers. Do they teach about the US Civil Rights movement and martin luther king jr. in the UK?

Answer 1

(1) Racism is probably more rife in USA than in UK. You should see the proportion of mixed race families in UK - it's far far greater than in USA. Despite recent surges of immigration into UK our fastest growing ethnic group in UK is mixed race (black/white - a mixture of long established Caribbeans and native English). Your fastest growing ethnic group is Hispanics - even the English language is under threat there!
(2) However, I am dismayed by your americanocentricism (if such a word exists!). USA is not the centre (center?) of the universe. We have our own black history, with struggles and heroes. It's just that we never started from such a low point as you all did. So we don't have such an extensive historical account. Also a lot of our struggle involved the liberal establishment gradually outlawing various forms of discrimination. However we do consider developments in other countries (like yours) within our educational curriculum, so yes to MLK etc. I am sure the USA does not reciprocate! Nor will you know the names of any of our heroes, heroines and villains. Just remember that Rosa Parks sat down at the front of an American bus - our buses were never segregated. When Dr Martin Luther King Jr spoke of the promised land, the UK was closer to it than was USA. Huey Newton & Bobby Seale did not protect our communities from a racist police force. When it was time to rise up, we did it ourselves. Now we have black Britons of whom we can be proud. In USA you have shameless careeer politicians who sold themselves to Dubya: Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice. You have musicians making fools of themselves: the druggie couple (Bobby Brown & Whitney Houston), the street hoodlum (Snoop Doggy Dogg), and let's not forget the Prince of Total Wackiness (Michael Jackson). But at least they are alive, isn't that right Tupac, Biggie and Jam Master? Hip-hop is big business but teaches all the wrong lessons: men need money by any means necessary, and then they have to flaunt it - bling, furs, flash cars, champagne, cash to throw around; women just have to dress sexily, shake their booties, and hook their men. Why would a black Briton look to the USA for inspiration these days? It isn't going to happen!

Answer 2

Well, the reason they don't teach about the US Civil Rights Movement in British schools is the same reason they don't teach about the English Civil War or the Gunpowder Plot in American schools - because they relate to the histories of different countries. Children here are more likely to be taught about the legacy of the British Empire, and how its eventual collapse (a Good Thing) has resulted in Britain being a very mixed culture. There is undoubted racism and prejudice still here, but it's of a very different nature from that in the US. Americans seem to be obsessed with skin colour - Katrina, for example - whereas for the most part blacks and Asians co-exist very easily in British society (don't forget I said there was still plenty of racism - Stephen Lawrence, etc). Prejudice here is more likely to be against different European groups, or travelling communities. Schools incorporate other cultures into lessons as a matter of course, so they are normalized. How many American schools observe Easter, Ramadan, Divali and Chinese New Year as a matter of course?

Where do these questions about the racist tendencies of the British come from, anyway? You don't distinguish your question by presuming that all history should be seen from an American perspective.

Answer 3

Why would Brits be taught about the US civil rights movement or Martin Luther King?Were you taught about Tito or Nehru in school?US civil rights movement and Martin Luther King,I'm sorry to have to inform you,are actually a small part on the world stage.There's a lot going on out there you know.

Answer 4

I don't know about in the countryside, but London has been a cosmopolitan city for centuries. In lots of ways they're more progressive then what we've been. Think of how long the U.S. held onto slavery, even though by that time it had been abandoned by most other societies. Btw I'm from the Bay Area so I don't really know anything about UK :) just my opinion.

Answer 5

Yes,
My beautiful english rose of a girlfriend is from coventry england and is sitting on the couch right next to me,she would like to know why we are not taught about english culture.If we were, you would never have had to ask your question in the first place.(lol)

Answer 6

As in most countries there are some areas that are intolerant and some that are not - it just depends on where you go.

Answer 7

the british.i.e English, irish,welsh,scots are more tolerant that U.S...and they probabably know more about the u.s history and modern history than your avg american.they have been dealing with that stuff long before Columbus.Dont forget..the "British" education system is better than american.

Answer 8

yeah sure i think so

Answer 9

I guess so.

Answer 10

We don't have the KKK here....