Background
As the reporting of incidents rose in rural areas, the Racial
Harassment Initiative (RHI) became increasingly aware that not
all agencies were responding equally to the problem, as some felt
racial harassment simply didn't happen in their area. In response
to this, the RHI formed a steering group in 2001 and commissioned
Leicester University to undertake detailed research into rural
racism.
The report's recommendations led to the RHI developing a
detailed action plan for the county council and assisted other
agencies do the same. This has improved the support the RHI
provides to victims in rural and isolated areas and the working
arrangements between the RHI and partner agencies generally.
An article in an international journal on community safety
commented on the "pro-active" stance taken by Suffolk County
Council in recognising the gravity of racism by establishing a unit
with a specific remit for dealing with it (i.e. the Racial
Harassment Initiative). The authors comment that the county council
should be regarded as "pioneering", in that they have created "new
machinery" to provide services to victims across Suffolk.
Tackling the Invisible Problem?
An Examination of the Provision of Services to Victims of Racial
Harassment in Rural Suffolk, written by Jon Garland and Neil
Chakraborti with Parvinder Sandal in June 2002, can be read
here (pdf, 527KB).