‘No Irish need apply.’ People still remember how Irish emigrants over the centuries often had to deal with hostility and discrimination when they sought a better life in countries around the world
Today, people in Sligo – especially ethnic minorities, asylum seekers and Travellers – often experience the same sort of treatment. And that’s what prompted the setting up of the Racist Incident Referral and Support Service.
I have read and re-read the article by Chinedu Onyejelem that appears in the Sunday Independent on 21 July (and in the 1-14 August edition of this paper) that made mention of a racist incident in a Sligo pub. It may have been surprising to some readers, even shocking. But it was no breaking news to me, considering the volume of cases that are brought to me on a weekly basis.
Allow me to reiterate my conviction that Sligo is one of the most friendly and welcoming cities, with very kind and polite people. If anyone were to paint Sligo as a racist city, that would be an insult and disrespect to the vast majority of people of Sligo. It would be also denying various efforts displayed by people of Sligo in fostering harmonious and peaceful intercommunity relations.
Nevertheless, I believe that fighting racism is not only being kind and nice to everyone. It’s in refusing to condone any racist action or keep silent when someone else is committing acts of racism. True, racism is not always immediately obvious, especially in passing. But I believe that any big crime starts very small and grows into a tragedy. This is to say, that if we do not uproot the weed when it is still manageable, it may grow out of control and become impossible to deal with.
Over the more than a decade that I have lived in Ireland, I’ve learned something very valuable: that in Ireland, racism is not about who we are, but what we are. This lesson has always given me a reason to fight for another day knowing that while the ‘who’ is immovable, the ‘what’ can always be challenged.
In Sligo, people who’ve experienced or witnessed racism have said they felt there was nothing they could do to report or challenge it, because there was no independent body to which they could report the incident. Sometimes racism might even be hard to prove because such behaviour has been regarded as normal, as ‘just a joke’.
Research was commissioned by the Peace and Reconciliation Partnership that confirmed the existence of racism in Sligo and examined what people needed to help them deal with it. This identified a desire for a confidential service to report racist incidents that would both support the person who is targeted and monitor the level and patterns of racist behaviour.
This study was followed by an action stage in which Sligo Family Resource Centre co-ordinated the setting up of an inter-agency working group, which will help to establish a framework for an independent, confidential incident recording and support service. This service will be staffed by trained key personnel from public and private service providers, guided by an inter-agency body comprising State agencies, voluntary organisations, NGOs and representatives of minority groups. It will befriend, record and support, advising people on their rights and referring them to other agencies where appropriate.
By framing a common definition of racism for all agencies, and gathering standardised information, it will ensure a consistent response by all organisations. It will neither label nor punish, but will encourage learning about racism and try to establish where changes in policy, procedures or legislation are needed. In the long run, by raising awareness and putting policy statements in place, the service will help build better relations among people and communities in Co Sligo.
Deo Ladislas Ndakengerwa is project co-ordinator of the Racist Incident Referral and Support Service.
