Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick has got himself into a spot of bother making comments about Handsworth, an area just down the road from us in Birmingham. He was caught in tape observing that he did not see a single white face there and went further by identifying this as an example of failure to Integrate by immigrant communities.
Now, the reality is that Handsworth is quite the diverse area in terms of ethnicity. If you get a chance to visit, do so. One of our first memories of arriving in the West Midlands was driving along Soho Road and being greeted by the bustle and life of the multi ethnic city. You will find people from all kinds of ethnic. backgrounds living side by side, exactly as Mr Jenrick claims to want. Yes that includes white people, though it’s possible to pass through an area and not see people from one ethnic group.
Now many of the people in Handsworth are 2nd and third generation and identify as British. Jenrick’s comments though, rather give the impression that to be British means to be white. However, we might allow for the possibility that integration should include the indigenous people group. Yet, even allowing for that, please notice how Jenrick lays the responsibility for integration on immigration/minority groups. What about the responsibility on the white British community to welcome? It takes two to tano.
There may be other factors fi consider such as the impact of poverty. These areas that are often linked to higher immigrant communities are often are often amongst the poorest. Why does Jenrick ask why it is that some ethnic minorities are often amongst the poorest? On the other side of the coin, integration is not just about where you live but also where you work, worship and eat
However, my concern is primarily to with Evsngelical Christian responses. It is easy to bemoan the lack of integration from prosperous white majority areas. Mind you can also boast about the benefits of a diverse and vibrant multicultural area from the safety of the same area.
So, before we start to virtue signal either way, I’d encourage us to think about where we live and worship.
Faithroots 