...in ourselves. I am taking a chance here.I run the risk of this turning into yet another battleground but I can say, hand on heart, it is not my intention. Would anyone joining in please respect that. OK, disclaimer over, on with the thread.

I was born in England, in 1953, to a Polish Father and English Mother. I was brought up in the Industrial North and went to Roman Catholic Schools. Nothing I can do about any of that. In the 1950s my parents generation were fearful of immigrants, even my father, who was one! Terms like 'nignog' and 'paki' were in common use. My father was brought up as strict Russian Orthodox and to be anti-Islam. His father was a Cossack from the Kuban river and became a priest in later life. My Mothers parents were English although her mother was half Welsh and her father had Irish ancestors. They were both Methodists and pretty anti-Papist! So, a good mixture and one that could, and probably did, have quite a profound effect.

I was probably well into my teens before I realised that my automatic or default views were ones that I had inherited and lived with all my life. And some were wrong. Luckily it was before I had children myself and as far as anything-ist views are concerned, the buck did stop here. The realisation was quite sudden. It was that most people are just the same as me. I have been trying to refine that over the past 40-odd years and now, gladly, it seems to come as standard. I still find the old ideas leap out and attack me but I now have a good weapon to fight them with. Taxi drivers cuts me. The old me notices it is a Pakistani. The more sensible one tells me he is just a bad driver. Terrorists blow up civilians. The old me thinks Moslems. The new one says fanatics. Don't get me wrong here, I am not soliciting either praise or condemnation. That is just the way it is. I don't feel guilty at my first reaction. I am not proud of conquering it. Again, it is just the way it is.

If I could give one piece of advice to anyone who is suffering from *ism. Just ask yourself this. Can people be branded by where they were born, the colour of their skin, their faith or their sex? If the answer is yes, then I urge you to reconsider. Judge people by their actions, not by these other traits. Most people, please note that I use 'most' here, are good. Of that I have no doubt. There are a few in every section of society that are criminal, misguided or just plan bad. There is nothing to tie these ones together. They come from every walk of life. It is a very salutary lesson, and one we should all periodically take, to watch young children at play. They have no pee-conceptions. They will play their game with anyone. They judge only by whether the others play fair. In some ways we could all take a leaf out of their book.

It is grossly unfair to stereotype. OK, I still like the obvious jokes occasionally. Like saying there are only two things I hate; racial prejudice and the French. Sorry Gallic cousins. I don't really man it. My sense of humour and conditioning tells me it is OK and I accept that I am just a pasty skinned roastbeef :-) But some sweeping statements are, to my mind, beyond the pale and I cannot help but get riled by them. I also detest the spam mails urging us to consider how much better off immigrants are compared to our own people. People are just people, not us or them.

Not sure if this will achieve anything but if one person reading it starts thinking in a slightly different way or if anyone can offer any advice, it will be worthwhile. Oh, and I feel like I have achieved something anyway. It has been lurking in there for a few weeks now. Better out than in :-)

Cheers

Dave the Gnome