UK race report denies systemic racism, prompting angry response

Findings of government-ordered review into racism condemned by equality campaigners as an ‘utter whitewash’.

London, United Kingdom – A government-commissioned review into racism has concluded the United Kingdom is not an institutionally racist country, prompting a backlash from critics who described the findings as an “utter whitewash”. In an anticipated report published on Wednesday, the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities said the UK was not yet a “post-racial country” but should be regarded as a “model for other white-majority countries”, citing achievements towards equality in the sectors of education and economy. While the report acknowledged “overt and outright” racism and said some communities were “haunted” by historic discrimination, it downplayed the importance of systemic racism in explaining inequalities in areas such as health and crime.