Official definition:

Racism is also called ‘racial discrimination’. It is treating someone less favourably because of their colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin.

People from ANY background can experience racism.

Racism can be bullying, but bullying isn’t always racism. If you are racially bullied then someone is bullying you because of your colour, race or religion. You don't have to be a different colour to suffer racist bullying. For example, you might have come from another country.

Have a look at www.bullying.co.uk to find out more.

Experiencing racism is very damaging for individuals. Among other things it can lead to:

• Depression

• Lower self-esteem (not feeling as good about yourself)

• Poor achievement at school (school grades get worse)

What young people in Sandwell think…?

We spoke to over 150 pupils from Secondary schools across Sandwell to find out what their definition of racism was.

Here is a snapshot of what they said…

Some also told us how they felt when they experienced racism…

Racism comes in lots of shapes and sizes. There are lots of different offensive behaviours and actions that are racist.

For example, people can be called racist names, get left out, bullied, made fun of, and physically attacked. 
 

There are other good websites available that can tell you more about what racism is. 

Show Racism the Red Card is just one of these websites.  Not only does it have lots of information, but games, films, and other interesting stuff too. 

Click on the picture to the left to go to the website.