OT: Guardianista takes a wander round Bradford : Sun Jul 05, 2009 11:33 pm  

Link 1936, Teacher Miss B. Casey coaches the boys from the football team in the school playground in Bradford, England. Photograph: Corbis Hands up if you recognise yourself...

Link 1936, Teacher Miss B. Casey coaches the boys from the football team in the school playground in Bradford, England. Photograph: Corbis Hands up if you recognise yourself...

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 12:01 am  

It's a cracking article.

It does sum up the many districts of Bradford, and how some feel ashamed to be involved with such a multi-cultural city, and assosciate the city as 'Brad-istan', and vote for the BNP and such. Yet some are proud of Bradford's cultural diversity and aren't afraid to be friends and assosciate with Asians, and therefore understand how ignorant some of the stereotypical things the youth of today utter are.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 9:04 am  

Good piece that.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 9:38 am  

"You can't get English food any more," says Pat, who works at the home. "No meat and potato pie, no pie and peas and black pudding..."

1. I'm pretty sure you can still get it.
2. Most people prefer a curry, or at least the option of a curry.

In fact, doesn't that sum up one of Bradford's main issues, people moaning about problems that don't exist and/or aren't actually problems?

And then there was Husman Khan. He was the one who had been in the throng burning copies of The Satanic Verses, but not long after the book-burning Khan met a girl -a white girl from Halifax

Not sure I approve of mixed relationships.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 10:01 am  

af wrote:

Not sure I approve of mixed relationships.

Very good that

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 11:53 am  

AaronBull wrote:

It's a cracking article.

It does sum up the many districts of Bradford, and how some feel ashamed to be involved with such a multi-cultural city, and assosciate the city as 'Brad-istan', and vote for the BNP and such. Yet some are proud of Bradford's cultural diversity and aren't afraid to be friends and assosciate with Asians, and therefore understand how ignorant some of the stereotypical things the youth of today utter are.

I initially came to Bradford as I wanted to live in a multi-cultural city, having spent my previous years in a 99% white working-class area. I loved the first 5 or 6 years but am now almost totally disollusioned by the place. I have very few non-white friends, I have joined the white flight north where those I meet are predominantly professional class. I no longer have the time or energy to mix in groups socially where I am likely to meet groups who live different cultures & lifestyles to me. Is this all down to me, is Bradford different (it certainly feels ghetto-ised)?

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 2:02 pm  

tigertot wrote:

I initially came to Bradford as I wanted to live in a multi-cultural city

As the rest of your post illustrates Bradford isn't really "multi-cultural" it's segregated and, to be honest, I think it is worse in that regard now than it was when I was younger.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 2:21 pm  

Asim wrote:

As the rest of your post illustrates Bradford isn't really "multi-cultural" it's segregated and, to be honest, I think it is worse in that regard now than it was when I was younger.

Apart from a group of white school children shouting abuse from a bus I have never experienced any direct racism from whites to Asians/blacks in the near 17 years since I moved to Bradford. I have been racially abused by Asians a number of times, always by youths including when I had my daughter with me in a pushchair & my partner. I have experienced hundreds of instances of ignorant racist comments by white colleagues & neighbours in general conversation, never when non-whites were present. It usually is related to the myths that Pakistanis (& it is always them - 'the others are alright') get preferential treatment in schools, health, benefits etc. This winter a colleague claimed his road in Wibsey had been gritted for the first time because there are now a number of Asians living on it.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 2:50 pm  

tigertot wrote:

Apart from a group of white school children shouting abuse from a bus I have never experienced any direct racism from whites to Asians/blacks in the near 17 years since I moved to Bradford. I have been racially abused by Asians a number of times, always by youths including when I had my daughter with me in a pushchair & my partner. I have experienced hundreds of instances of ignorant racist comments by white colleagues & neighbours in general conversation, never when non-whites were present. It usually is related to the myths that Pakistanis (& it is always them - 'the others are alright') get preferential treatment in schools, health, benefits etc. This winter a colleague claimed his road in Wibsey had been gritted for the first time because there are now a number of Asians living on it.

As you know I'm mixed race, we lived in Idle with few problems, apart from a couple of shopkeepers that I can think of my dad was the only dark face in our area, one day that all changed and for some reason we started to get fireworks and dog s**t through the door, had graffiti daubed on the house when we were away on holiday and had the windows put through a couple of times, it lasted for a couple of months then stopped as soon as it started but, if this sort of thing happened when any Asian families moved into a new area, it's easy to see why they might have moved back sharpish to help this segregation on it's way.

I suffered from a little mild bullying at first school for being a "Paki" but got a lot worse when I was working in various factories during summer breaks from Asians because I wasn't Asian enough.

: Mon Jul 06, 2009 3:12 pm  

Asim wrote:

As you know I'm mixed race,

I hadn't noticed - that's how PC I am.