Black police leaders have warned that United Kingdom The biggest of The police In the force racism It’s getting worse, as new figures show that the number of cases brought to tribunals for racial discrimination has increased by 110% compared to last year.
Employment tribunal figures obtained exclusively by The Independent show that cases of racism once morest the Metropolitan Police doubled from 2022 to 2023.
National Black Police Association (NPBA) president Andy George says he has seen a two-and-a-half-fold increase in support cases since a scathing review last year found the force to be institutionally racist for the second time. .
A serving black police officer, who has complained regarding racial discrimination, said racism was now ‘blatant’, adding: ‘There are also many angry white people in the force, who are so-called. There is anger at the ‘awakening’ and they take it out on people.
Another serving officer from an ethnic minority heritage told The Independent that male colleagues described her as having ‘exotic’ and ‘animalistic qualities’ and her attraction to her race as ‘almost a fetish’. declared as
Other examples of racism include the use of offensive language in staff WhatsApp groups, targeting of complaints regarding discrimination and officers from ethnic minorities facing ‘unfair’ disciplinary action.
NPBA founder and former Met Police Superintendent Leroy Logan says the statistics remind him of the Met before the McPherson era. It was around this time that the force obstructed an investigation into the racist murder of young Stephen Lawrence.
The Macpherson Report of 1999 was the first major review to conclude that the force was ‘institutionally racist’ – a point supported by Louis Casey in his report the previous year.
Logan said he fears the true scale of the problem may be even greater given the underreporting of racism.
He added: ‘The latest figures show an appalling situation at the Met, worse than any institution I know.’
The findings come at a time when tribunals brought once morest the force have increased by 65 per cent year-on-year, including a 70 per cent rise in disability discrimination tribunals and a 27 per cent rise in sex discrimination tribunals. The number of race discrimination tribunals increased from 20 to 42, the number of disability tribunals increased from 38 to 65 and the number of sex discrimination cases increased from 22 to 28.
Experts believe that when Baroness Casey learned that ethnic minority officers were more likely to face disciplinary or abuse action, many of the subsequent staff complaints stemmed from unfair treatment.
Their report found that black officers faced 81 percent more disciplinary actions than white officers.
The report added that ‘there are people in the Met who have racist attitudes and black, Asian and ethnic minority officers and staff are more likely to be victims of racism, discrimination and bullying at the hands of them. ‘
Reacting to the rise in cases, George said: ‘I believe the rise is due to the worsening of racism. Support cases have increased 2.5 times since Casey’s review, and we found that more officers are being disciplined.
‘For too long officers have seen tribunal cases as their only chance of getting justice.’
The figures come following the NPBA in February called on people from ethnic minorities to join the Met to protest an investigation into ‘racist and vile’ abuse of a leading official. Boycott being.
The association claims that Matt Black Police Association (MPA) chairman Charles Ehkewaya was targeted because he raised concerns regarding the racism he and his colleagues faced.
Logan, who received damages from the Met Police following being falsely accused of misconduct involving £80 in expenses, said: ‘It is quite clear that the Met’s traditions are very bad. People aren’t sticking around, and if they are, they’re going through a lot of harassment, mainly based on skin color and gender. If you’re a black woman, it’s a doubly difficult situation.’
The officer, who was awarded an MBE for driving the police forward, said the force had been ‘unrecognisable’ since he retired 10 years ago. He added: ‘The Met has a track record of abuse of process when it comes to investigating black officers, which adds to the toxicity of the operational culture.
‘Met BPA is boycotting the recruitments for these reasons, which are being pointed out by the manner of the investigation once morest its chairman, Charles Ehkeoya. At the Met, you’re four to five times more likely to be investigated if you’re black than your white colleagues, and less likely to be nominated for a promotion.’
The Independent spoke to a serving black police officer who had previously complained regarding racial discrimination.
Two London police officers are seen in this picture (AFP)
“Racism has always been there but more and more people are filing tribunal claims because they can and it would have been worse for what was happening to them,” he said. is going ‘Now it is very clear. This is not a case of someone putting a banana in your locker or calling you a monkey. A system of abuse is often used once morest black officers where we feel very isolated at all times. There are also a lot of angry white people on the force, who are upset by the so-called ‘awakening’ and take it out on others even more.’
Speaking regarding his experience of racism within the force, the officer added: ‘I don’t want to be treated differently – I just want to be treated fairly.’
Rick Prior, chairman of the Met Police Federation, said Baroness Casey’s findings had encouraged some officers to take their complaints forward.
However, while admitting there were clearly problematic behaviours, Mr Prior said he did not accept his accusation that the Met was ‘institutionalised racist, sexist or anti-feminist’. .
“It might also be a factor that the Baroness Casey report encouraged officers to file a complaint if they felt they had been treated unfairly,” he said.
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Mr Prior is supporting a case in which a black officer faced ‘disproportionate scrutiny’ from his local Professional Standards Unit, which launched abuse proceedings once morest him. “If a black or minority ethnic officer is being treated disproportionately, there should be a mechanism within the Met to properly investigate this so that they can learn from it and do better in the future,” he added. Can prevent this from happening.’
He also revealed that the Met Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, is dealing with an increasing number of disability claims from officers who require reasonable adjustments, such as from home. Working or a phased return to duty.
Dave Campbell, chairman of the Met Police Disability Association, told The Independent that while the force had made great strides in disability awareness in recent years, there was still a long way to go. Responding to the statistics, he said: ‘I am not surprised but I am concerned. I deal with many complaints from members of our workforce with disabilities, and since the Casey report it has increased at an alarming rate.’
He said there was a more ‘careless’ attitude towards the way people with disabilities were being treated, with some being kept ‘outside the organisation’. He urged the force to stop focusing on what staff cannot do and see the value in employees to create a workforce where staff with disabilities can thrive.
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: ‘We aim to be a service that all Londoners can be proud of. There is no place for discrimination of any kind at the Met. ‘We’re creating a workplace where everyone can thrive – and that’s inclusive and accessible to everyone.’
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2024-07-18 03:12:03