With a million missing voters, how can life get better for Britain’s BAME communities?
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Version 0 of 1. I am frequently asked whether life has improved for the black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) community over the 20 years I have been campaigning on its behalf. Simply put, my answer is that there has been some change for the better – but not enough. When I speak with young Londoners they continue to tell me about the unfairness of stop and search. Every week I receive dozens of letters from families who have suffered injustice or received bad treatment at the hands of state institutions. And when I sit in the chamber of the House of Lords I do not see a democracy that is truly representative. My biggest fear is not that government will fail to act, but that we will stop believing we can be a voice of change. The general election is fast approaching and nearly 20% of British BAME people are not registered to vote. Far too many of us are still silent. So far, too many of us are still not seeing the improvements we want. It has been well documented that the BAME vote has the potential to decide the outcome of the election. Research carried out by Operation Black Vote found that in more than 100 constituencies the BAME electorate is larger than the majority of the sitting MP. Britain’s BAME community needs to recognise that this is a moment when we can push for true racial justice and equality. As it stands we will miss this opportunity, a general election where no one can call the outcome. Non-registration is one of the biggest barriers to turnout on polling day. To make matters worse, the coalition has introduced hasty electoral reforms which mean that registration must now be completed individually, rather than as a household. But many people are unaware of these rules, which is how you end up with an unacceptable situation like that in Brent, where it has been estimated that 5,648 residents have dropped off the electoral register. BAME and young people will make up a large proportion of this figure, and Ed Miliband is rightly addressing the issue with a drive to register a million missing voters. Registration procedures need to be accessible, and any changes effectively communicated: the government reforms are failing on both counts. This silent scandal could have a devastating impact on polling day when thousands of BAME people realise they are not eligible to vote because they are not registered to do so. Unequal turnout is bad for us as a community and is a failure for UK democracy. When governments develop policy they almost certainly respond to the interests of voters and ignore non-voters. Therefore we are allowing those who are more politically visible to have a significant influence on policies that affect our daily lives. Labour has done more than any other party to improve BAME representation, and it’s good news that there are three excellent BAME women on the shortlist to be our next candidate in north London’s Edmonton. But every party knows there is still much more to do. |